First Love and the Promise of the Future
by SuzunoKoi
Summary: The story starts off with Mirai Kageyama reminiscing about the day he met his first love, Kirie Kuroki. Three years have passed since then and Mirai is now a college student at Rentomi College. Kirie, on the other hand, is working at Rapunzel, an elder sister branch of Cinderella's. They soon meet again and a story filled with drama and romance begins for the two of them.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**Meeting You Again**

**The Point of View and Reminisce of Mirai Kageyama**

_ It was a hot nearly midsummer day in May when I first met her. My first and only love whom I have never forgotten since the day we met. Even now, I still think back to that day._

_ She was a beauty that crossed right into my path on day. I had been lying down on the grass, and I was looking up at the sky. Back then, I was bored out of my mind like some teenage kid who had nothing else to do than stare at something in front of him. In fact, I was in my teens during that time, and I was 16 years old, in my second year of high school._

_ I sighed. "What am I even doing? All I do during my free time is lie down on the grass and look at the sky all day at the same place."_

_ There was no one around as I said these words aloud. At least, that was what I thought until I heard something near me._

_ "Stupid Mana… She's always telling me that she's better than I am." It was a girl's voice. "Just because she's the strongest hero at school, doesn't mean that she should try to prove her strength against me when I'm around her. Geez."_

_ It sounded as though the girl was venting her anger out on someone._

Is she talking about her rival or something? _I thought._

_I wasn't really interested or anything. I wasn't even looking at my surroundings, either, so I didn't even know what she looked like, or what she was doing. That was, until…_

_ "Ahh!"_

_ I heard a scream when something had hit my legs in front. There was some pain around my ankles, but it wasn't as upsetting as the discomfort around my upper thighs. That was when I looked up and saw a girl with shoulder length hair that was a very dark shade of pink, like a dark cerise color, or a dark magenta color. Perhaps it was more like a darker shade of Mexican pink. Whatever the shade was, it was definitely very—and I mean _very_—dark for a pink color. She also had sapphire blue eyes and she wore a school uniform on like me, but was from a different school. There was also a white ribbon tied around the left side of her hair and had a surprised (or should I say a more intrigued expression) on her face as she stared at me. I stared right back with a similar look of my own._

_ "…" She kept staring into my eyes with that same expression on her face before asking a question from me. "Why are you laying down like that?"_

_ I looked right back at her, stilled speechless from the fact that she fell right on top of me. "…"_

_ Then, she smiled. "Never mind that. Anyway, I'm Kirie Kuroki. I'm a second-year student at Souseizouma Academy. What's your name?"_

_ "My name is Mirai Kageyama," I answered. "I'm a first-year student at Kazenori Academy _(風典学園 _Kazenori Gakuen_)_."_

_ "By the way," she added, "you can call me Kirie. There's no need for any formalities, so you don't have to say my name with an honorific attached to it." She backed away and stood up confidently, and held out her right hand. "Here. Let me help you up."_

_ I took her hand and she pulled me up without and problem. "That's a pretty strong grip you go there, Kirie," I said, moving my fingers back and forth as I looked at my hand. I was amazed by how she easily got me onto my feet in an instant. It was almost as if our roles as a guy and girl were reversed because of her masculinity. But, I had to say, she was really pretty. She had the figure of a normal girl. Although, she seemed more tomboyish in my eyes._

_ There again was another smile from her. "Thanks, Mirai." Within a split second, she blinked as though an idea suddenly came to mind. "I know! Why don't we make a promise?"_

_ "A promise?" I tilted my head to the side, slightly puzzled by her notion._

_ She nodded with her eyes closed and opened them shortly afterward to look at me. "Yeah. A promise to meet again and become lovers."_

_ "Huh?!" My eyes widened, and I was taken aback by those words._

_ "You don't want to?" she asked._

_ I soon found myself blushing as I stared into her blue eyes. The moment I first saw her when she was on top of me, I had fallen in love with her. I just didn't realize what my speechlessness was until now._

_ I shook my head rapidly. "No. It's not that I don't want to. I mean, I really do want to see you again, Kirie. So…"_

_ Kirie smiled softly at me. "Then… Let's make a promise. If by any chance that we do see each other again, Mirai, we'll officially become lovers."_

_ I nodded nervously. "Yeah."_

_ "Then, get ready for this."_

_ I had no time to reply when all of a sudden, Kirie swiftly came forward and kissed me on the lips. I couldn't believe what had just happened, but then, I quickly accepted it and returned her kiss, sealing our promise in hopes of meeting her again one day._

Three years have passed since then. I'm now an undergraduate at Rentomi College (練福大学 _Rentomi Daigaku_). Since I'm in my second year here, I'll be able to graduate by next spring when I turn 20. It's mainly due to the fact that I've been putting in more time and effort in taking several classes. However, I still can't believe that I'll graduate on my own birthday. It just never really striked me as a very logical thing to do as a young adult.

I gave a sigh and glanced at the sky, moving my head slightly. "I wonder how Kirie's been keeping up this whole time. I really want to see her again."

**End of Mirai's Point of View**

**At the same time in an editorial office**

A young woman with dark magenta hair pinned up behind her head was handing in a large stack of papers to someone; she had blue eyes and wore a pair of rounded glasses that had silver frames.

"Here you go, Takuji," she said with a refreshing smile. "You can get this all done before lunch, right?"

A young man with mint-colored hair and periwinkle eyes grinned eagerly. "You can count on me, Kirie. I'm your boss, after all. I can handle any amount of work someone gives me."

"As expected of the magician in our company," Kirie praised. The look on her face was more of a teasing one, though, despite her compliment. "Unlike you, I'm human, but I have some powers of my own."

Takuji closed his eyes and smiled, letting out a child-like laugh. "Ehe. Well, you did go to Souseizouma, after all. But that school was basically a co-built place between the magicians and demons in order make things peaceful again, joining both Sousei Academy and Zouma Academy into one. But, I guess it didn't really work out since your principals didn't even like each other very much. Plus, it's been sixty-three years since the grand opening. Anyway," he looked at the stack of papers on his desk and started writing on each and every one of them with a black ink pen at a very quick pace. "We'll be going to work at the casino tonight in order to interview the greatest celebrities ever. I guarantee that it'll be great for our company. Asuka will love it, too."

"Hai, hai," Kirie abided. She knew her boss's mind and personality like any other friend or employee at Rapunzel, a sister branch of Cinderella's in Roppongi. It was only a matter of time before he would finish, which was a good thing for everyone since they trusted him and had a deep respect for the colorful magician.

Later that day, around 3:30 p.m., Mirai and Noel were walking towards the hotel they usually hung out at with some of their other friends. They were about to cross the street up ahead. Soon, the light turned green and they made their way through. Once they were in the middle of the street, someone bumped into them. Or rather, someone bumped into _Mirai_.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" the young woman who had made her way into the college student's path apologized. It was Kirie. She bowed politely with her eyes closed before opening them again to look at the two in front of her. "I didn't see you there earlier. I hope you didn't get hurt. If so, then I apologize again for any injuries that I may have caused to you."

Mirai shook his head with a light smile of his own. "No, it's fine. You didn't hurt me or anything, so there's no need for you to apologize for anything. But thank you for your courtesy."

"Is that so?" Kirie smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. Anyway, I'll be going this way. I have a meeting right now, so… Anyway, it was nice to meet you." She smiled cheerfully and strolled back to Rapunzel.

Mirai kept smiling. As he started walking again, a lightning bolt came across his mind as if he realized something. He looked back in a somewhat shocked and stunned state. Noel looked back.

"What's wrong, Mirai?" the tall blond asked. He felt a bit of concern for the younger male.

Mirai kept looking in the direction Kirie had sauntered. "It's just… I felt like I met her before somewhere a moment ago, but I don't know when and where I did. It feels too familiar like a strange sense of nostalgia that leaves a tingling feeling in the one's entire mind and body." That was exactly how the college student felt when he stared in the same direction.

Noel put his hand around Mirai's arm. "Come on. We're in the way of a car, Mirai."

Mirai nodded and walked with Noel to the location they were headed before. "Yeah."

Around seven o'clock that night, many of the employees from Rapunzel and Cinderella were all gathered inside the hotel run by Satsuki Kitaoji. There were also journalists and editors from other departments as well, who were all wearing business casual clothing to formal clothing. They had all been invited by the owner himself, and were making their way in to the building.

Takuji and Kirie were also a couple of the guests there. There was another young woman with them with long white hair and blue eyes that seemed to have a shine to them. She was around Takuji's age, being a few months younger than him, and was a year older than Kirie.

"I can feel it!" Takuji exclaimed. He wasn't loud enough to catch the other guests' attention, though, and had a pretty tolerant sense of "excitement" for the situation. "There's definitely a large scale of us getting more than half the scoops here." He went on, bragging about Rapunzel in a calm tone of voice. "Our company's had the most success and profit in all of Roppongi. In addition to that, we're also the oldest editorial department to have been built over a hundred sixty years ago, so it doesn't matter that the others outside our company are here; we'll be making the most of this night at all costs."

Then, a voice was heard behind the mint-haired young man.

"Oh? I don't think so." It was the chief editor of Cinderella making his way with one of his employees to the scene. Next to him was a young woman who was in her early twenties, but a few years older than Takuji, Asuka, and Kirie. The chief editor glanced at his the woman and introduced her to the small group of three. "Anyway, this is my new employee. She joined this morning at Cinderella and her first assignment will be to interview one of the many celebrities in the casino. Still, I see _you_ haven't changed since you started working at Rapunzel, Tamoto."

Takuji bursted into a fit. "Don't mess with me! My team and I will pummel you out of business! Also, I told you not to call me that, Jinnai!" His expression was comical enough that anyone who saw the mint-haired young man would more than likely compare him to a growling bear.

And _that_ someone did.

_Oh! _the young woman standing next to the chief editor from Cinderella thought. _That's cute. He looks like an angry bear from the woods._

She was blushing at the sight of Rapunzel's current CEO while the other two women were looking at the mint-haired young man. The white-haired one smiled at the sight of the two men; Kirie, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes in slight irritation. It seemed Takuji's venting state was more of an eyesore for her to see than for the other guests who were watching.

"I'm sorry for the trouble my boss has caused for yours," the woman working for Cinderella apologized. She bowed, showing her condolences towards the matter.

"You don't have to apologize," Kirie responded casually. She threw her right arm out and frowned to display her disdain. "Takuji's always like that. He and Atsushi over there are basically the comic relief for this party. It kind of takes me back to when I was in high school and college, though. In fact, I was a lot like Takuji a few years ago."

The woman's eyes widened. "Really? If I may ask, how old are you?"

"I'm twenty years old," Kirie replied with a strained smiled. "I graduated college early to get a job at Rapunzel after I met Takuji and Asuka since they basically recruited me. Anyway, I'm Kirie Kuroki. What's your name?"

The woman smiled back. "I'm Ayame Irodori. I'm twenty-four years old. You're really young to have graduated college at that age, Kirie. I'm very amazed by your accomplishment. You must have been top of your class, too."

"Not really," Kirie dismissed. "I just kept working towards a high grade for the career. That's about all I really did."

"Either way, that's still something others would be proud of," Ayame praised. "I was a scholarship student during both my high school and college days, but I graduated a few weeks before my last year of college ended. It was tough every now and then, but I'm glad I made it through."

"I think that's more of an achievement than what I've done," Kirie stated. "You've gone through more than I have and you've managed to pull through all of it."

Asuka, the white-haired young woman, smiled pleasantly. "Maybe this is actually a way of hard work paying off since you've gotten a wonderful career such as this, Ayame-san. It's a perfect opportunity to start off an interview with one of the main celebrities gathered here tonight. Do your best!"

Ayame nodded. "Thank you, um…"

"By the way, this is Asuka," Kirie introduced. "She's Takuji's fiancée/bride. The party's actually the wedding celebration for them. Everyone who's been invited received a single company wedding invitation."

Ayame's eyes widened at the sudden news. "Really?! I didn't expect this to be a party for a wedding ceremony."

Kirie nodded. "Yeah. Guess Atsushi—that idiot with the small shaven goatee—didn't tell you anything but to come here in a fancy dress and a pair of shoes, huh? He always does that to new employees."

"Maa, maa, Kirie-chan," Asuka smiled once more. "It's not nice to say that about others, even if they have facial hair."

Kirie's eyes lowered themselves. "But you just said a rude thing yourself, Asuka."

"That shouldn't matter right now," Asuka said with a disapproving frown. She turned towards Ayame and introduced herself. "Good evening. My name is Asuka Suzushiro, and my soon-to-be husband, Takuji Uramoto." Not only had she introduced _herself_; she had introduced Takuji. "Takuji's going to be interviewing the owner of the casino later on after we get married."

Kirie smiled slyly. "And Asuka's going to be interviewing Chihaya."

"Chihaya?" Ayame tilted her head to her left. "You mean, Chihaya Koda?"

Kirie nodded again. "That's right. You know, since his skills have benefited those in need, Asuka feels a strong connection to what he does. She's also teacher and kids like her for genuinely wanting to help them whenever they're stuck on a problem. She and Takuji both work, so it keeps their lives busy most of the time. This is one of the few times they get to spend time together, even though it's mainly for work. It's kind of tiring sometimes having to see Asuka double as both a teacher _and_ a journalist/interviewer, really. I have to be on the lookout for her, especially if she overworks herself and collapses from fatigue and exhaustion."

"Wow," Ayame breathed. She placed her closed hand near the side of her chin in thought. "That must be hard, having two jobs and trying to manage your work and love life at the same time. The most horrifying thing I think that could happen while doing that is ending up in a hospital, and trying to recover from everything. I don't know if I could ever try working two jobs, though. If I were in a relationship, I think it might affect it to the point where it'll sever completely, and I might never be able to see the guy I'm dating again."

Kirie smiled. "At least you're not an idiot like Asuka is. She's too much of a hard worker to think about her body's limits."

"Kirie-chan!" Asuka angrily scolded. "I can take care of myself without getting sick. If I _did_ collapse, it would cause trouble for Takuji. I don't want to worry him and make him miss work just to take care of me."

Kirie shook her head in dissatisfaction and looked at Ayame. "See? That's even more selfish of you to say so."

Takuji turned around and agreed, taking hold of both of Asuka's hands with his own. "That's right, Asuka! I don't want you to cut me out of your life like that!" He gazed into his soon-to-be wife's eyes with a staid and passionate expression. "We're going to be married tonight, so we have to find time for each other no matter what. Isn't that what being in a relationship is about? Supporting and taking care of the person you love is important when you're together with them, isn't it? Love is not one-sided if you have someone that you're with, so you can't let go of the person you love."

Asuka's eyes widened as she gazed right back into Takuji's periwinkle eyes. "Takuji…" Then, she smiled softly and nodded. "Of course. I want to be with you forever, too. Thank you…"

Seeing the two of them stare at each other for what felt like centuries, Kirie sighed while shaking her head once more. "What a stupid couple…"

Several minutes later, Kirie, Takuji, Asuka, Ayame, and Atsushi were in the casino. Many of the guests were already set on gambling, while others walked around every now and them to try everything they could find. It was an incredible sight to behold, and it was nice.

Takuji, however, sighed in exasperation. "Is this really where our wedding will be? I thought everyone would celebrate out on the top of the roof or something. There's a pool up there, so why not just go to the highest place here?"

Asuka smiled at the mint-haired young man. "It can't be helped right now. We'll just have to be patient until Satsuki-san tells us. He told us there was something important he wanted to say beforehand, remember?"

"I know," Takuji answered. His irritation soon showed on his face. "But if he dares to make a fool out of this, I'll have him know his place in this world."

Ayame looked at the couple and frowned. "I feel bad for Takuji. He must have really wanted to have a grander celebration than this."

"Yes, but this is just the beginning," Atsushi noted. He couldn't help but keep his broad grin on his face as he continued. "He's usually like that when he doesn't get his way at big parties like this one. He's known for being a guy who likes to party. Asuka and Kirie have attended occasions with him, along with the other workers from Rapunzel whenever they were invited to one. Takuji's always been the one to treat everyone, though. Oh, and let me just tell you this. You'll need to know it if you ever meet anyone else like him and Asuka." He looked at the brunette with a serious expression and said, "Take heed of the wealth they have. Magicians are the wealthiest beings to have ever lived in this universe, and are practically paid every day in their world. Unlike the economies of some countries here on Earth, their economy is much more successful. In fact, it flourishes without having any reason. It's also like getting paid without having to work but they actually have people who work because—"

"—that's the way the world runs?" Ayame finished. "I've heard many people say things that end with those words before you hired me, Boss. It just keeps getting older and older every time I hear someone say that the world runs that way."

The editor-in-chief was a little taken aback. "Err… I guess you already knew about this stuff, huh, Irodori?"

"Doesn't everyone know about magicians by now?" the brunette lowered her eyes, somewhat irritated by the well-known facts. She knew by the fact that magicians like Takuji and Asuka rarely had natural physical features and all of their kind had pale white skin that was beautiful on the outside. "We're in the twenty-first century, Jinnai-san. The least you can do is try to keep up with your employees. I'm not as old as you, and I'm not someone who looks that way, either. So, in all pretenses, I don't want to be on the same level as you."

Atsushi's mouth dropped when he realized the truth. Indeed, he was nearing the age of what the youngsters called an "old man" since he was nearing his mid-twenties. But hearing something like that was the most critical hit he had ever taken in his life. It was as if an arrow had struck right through his heart, piercing it in the center.

"…!" He had a pained look on his face as he stared at the floor. "You got me there, in my most important organ... Irodori."

Ayame sighed at the pathetic sight of her current employer. "Geez… Get a grip, will you?"

Meanwhile, Kirie was playing pool with a few of her co-workers from Rapunzel. Everyone who was playing and/or observing the match were enjoying themselves, throwing in laughs and a round of applause every now and then.

"Go for it, Kirie!" one of the onlookers shouted encouragingly. It was a woman who had been employed around the same time Takuji had started working at Rapunzel.

Kirie made a shot and the ball she hit with the cue ball went into one of the holes. As the game kept going, there were more cheers than anywhere else in the room. This, of course, attracted the attention of a familiar college student. He turned his gaze towards the Rapunzel employees who were playing and watching the players make their moves. Needless to say, the first person to catch his eye was Kirie herself. He couldn't take his eyes off her and kept staring at the dark magenta-haired girl as lingering feelings floated all around him.

Shortly afterwards, Satsuki Kitaoji began his speech.

"Attention, everyone," he said. All eyes were now on the casino owner and each and every person excluding Satsuki himself was listening. "As you all may know, today is a very special day, which is why I have opened the Urban Casino and Resort Roppongi today for those who wish to enter and enjoy themselves here. Tonight, in particular, marks a very special night for my friend, Takuji Uramoto, and his bride, Asuka Suzushiro. In order to celebrate their wedding, I have arranged for it to be held on the rooftop of the hotel and casino. Everyone is invited to come as you are all guests here. I apologize for not making this announcement sooner, but we will now be moving to the roof for the wedding ceremony."

Takuji's sour expression brightened and he was back to his jubilant old self in no time. He started jumping, which sounded as if he was making bouncing effects, going "boing" everywhere with his arms held high for everyone to see. Satsuki, in particular, glanced to the right corner of his vision, and smiled amusingly. He was content to see the young CEO of Rapunzel back in high spirits, letting out a lighthearted chuckle. On the inside, he felt as though he was going to burst into a fit of laugher at any moment. Asuka, on the other hand, smiled happily at the sight of her fiancé/groom. It was very uplifting to all of the guests gathered in the casino; Takuji of all people could not contain his happiness and kept jumping for a while before he stopped. Most of the guests had let out a laugh or two at the scene and were enjoying themselves not nearly as much as the mint-haired magician.

After that, they all made their way up to the roof, which had a large pool, and the wedding began. Takuji and Asuka exchanged rings and a few words right before putting their partner's designated wedding ring on each other's left ring fingers. Everyone smiled and clapped once Takuji's ring was on his, and they all partied for a while before almost all of the interviewers, journalists, and reporters were gone, leaving Kirie, Takuji, Asuka, and Ayame to go to the VIP room, stay in the hotel, or go home.

"Thanks, Satsuki," Takuji smiled at older man. He was still bubbling with bliss on the inside as he and Asuka walked together with Satsuki. "Nothing could make a man happier than to finally marry the love of his life. And it's all thanks to you, my friend."

Asuka smiled along with them. "Indeed. It was really fun to have everyone with us. Thank you, Satsuki-san."

"It was my pleasure to hold the ceremony here as part of the grand opening," Satsuki responded courtly. He was glad to see the two of them have a good time. "You two have helped me throughout many difficult situations, so it was the least I could do. Why don't you come with me to the VIP room? I also invited Kirie earlier and she said she'll stop by later. Yuzuki and the others will also be there, so we can all hang out leisurely."

"That's a great idea," Takuji grinned excitedly. "We can't just let the fun go by. The night's still here, so we have to enjoy ourselves while we still can!"

Asuka nodded. "It'll also be a good time for our interviews, so we'll have plenty of it left afterwards."

"Alright!" Takuji held out both his arms in front of him with closed hands. "We'll get everything done and have lots of fun talking with each other. It'll be the best thing we'll do in Roppongi!"

Satsuki smiled agreeably. "Of course. I'm looking forward to answering your questions and spending time with you, Takuji. It's been some time since we last had a chat together with everyone else, so I'm also looking forward to it."

Soon, the three of them made their way to the VIP room Satsuki had mentioned not too long ago and kept conversing with one another along the way, enjoying the time they had together.

Kirie slowly opened the door to the VIP room and stepped inside, closing the door behind her.

"Excuse me," she said. She took a look around and saw a group of four other men with Satsuki, Takuji, and Asuka, in the room. She glanced up at Satsuki and asked, "Um… Yuzuki's going to stay with her for a while, so I thought I should let you know since you're his older brother."

Satsuki saw the look on Kirie's face and smiled. "Thank you. I'm sure that Miss Ayame would at least like to know that he's been looking after her when she wakes up."

"You've been a big help yourself," Chihaya proclaimed, acknowledging Kirie's assistance. "When she passed out like that, you were the one who told the other guests to prepare a room for her, and let her rest. We don't normally see someone like you, but I guess extraordinary human women actually _exist_ in this world."

"Now, aren't _you_ a rude one," Ryoichi Hirose, the famous author, smirked. "True, she's a rarity amongst almost all of the women in the world, but she's at least got the guts to help someone out. That's something that should be commended by others such as yourself, Chihaya. Even _I_ have to give her some credit for it."

Noel nodded while still having his nonchalant expression on his face. "Women can be strong to a large extent, but it mostly depends on them. Not many are like her."

"I know what you all mean," Chihaya added, "but you don't really have to explain any further than what's already been said. Remember, I was only stating _my_ side of it. It's not like I really wanted to _downgrade_ her or anything. I was just complimenting her in my _own_ way."

Satsuki frowned. "Still, that was very impolite of you to say, Chihaya. She's a guest here, and being rude to a guest is not something that I approve of."

Chihaya let out a small chuckle. "I know. You're always like this, Satsuki. But that's one of the good things about you."

As the rest of the group continued to engage in a conversation of their own, Mirai could not help but stare at Kirie's face. He knew he had seen her before, and it put him in a daze. Kirie herself soon noticed the gaze she was receiving from him and glanced at the college student. Then, she smiled in a faint but relaxed way at him.

Satsuki caught on shortly after and frowned. "Mirai, go on and greet her. It's not tactful if you just keep looking at one of our guests for the rest of the night without saying anything."

"…" Although he heard the financial prince's words, he could not react to them the way he usually did. In fact, he was still looking at Kirie with longing eyes.

Satsuki glanced at Mirai once more. Then he turned his head towards Kirie with an apologetic expression. "Please forgive him, Kirie. He's not usually like this. He's really a good kid at heart, but…"

Kirie shook her head. "No, it's fine. I don't mind at all, Satsuki." Then, she glanced at Mirai, still smiling at the younger man. "It's nice to see you again. My name is Kirie Kuroki. I'm also an editor at Rapunzel, so I also work with Takuji and Asuka over there."

At that moment, Mirai's eyes widened in shock and disbelief. The name he had just heard triggered his first memory with the dark magenta-haired young woman.

"…!"

_Kirie? The same Kirie I met three years ago? Is it really true? Am I really seeing her again? _Those thoughts swirled around in his head as stared at Kirie in realization and remembrance of his first love standing right in front of him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Offer and Encounter**

Mirai stood where he was and stared at Kirie in a trance. "…"

Satsuki glanced at Mirai and frowned. "Mirai, go on and say hello to her. If you stand there all night and don't greet any of our guests, it's considered bad behavior on your part. You should at least give a word or two to her before doing whatever you please."

"It's fine, Satsuki," Kirie assured the casino owner with a smile. "I don't really mind it at all, so you don't have to go through all the trouble of having anyone introduce themselves to me."

There was that same frown on Satsuki's face, which had slightly budged. "But…"

"You don't have to do that for my sake," Kirie replied. "The thought is more than enough to make anyone happy." Then, she focused her gaze on Mirai. "So we meet again. I didn't expect to see you here, but it looks like it's a pretty small world, after all. Anyway, my name is Kirie Kuroki. Might I ask for yours? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I thought it'd be nice to at least let you know my name."

Hearing those words come out of Kirie's mouth, Mirai's eyes widened at the sudden realization of seeing his first love right in front of him. "…!" He stared at the dark magenta-haired young woman with disbelief in his eyes. "Kirie…? Is it really… you…?"

"Huh?" Kirie was slightly confused, unsure of what the college student meant. "Um… Can you repeat what you said? I don't really…"

Suddenly, Mirai's expression shifted to a stern look on his face. He placed his right hand over his chest with an intense gaze in his eyes, taking a step forward. "Do you… really not remember me at all?"

Kirie frowned. "I'm sorry. I don't understand why you're asking me that. I'm really sorry."

"My name is Mirai Kageyama," the college student introduced himself. "Three years ago, we met after you fell on top of me. You introduced yourself and helped me up. After that, you asked me if I wanted to make a promise with you."

Kirie's eyes lowered as she thought about what Mirai told her. "A promise?" It seemed as though she was trying deeply to remember something.

Mirai nodded. "That's right. We made a promise. It was a promise to see each other again and become lovers if we _did_ meet in the future. Back then, we went to different schools, so that was the only time I ever saw you until today. I've always wanted to see you after that, Kirie. I even waited for the day we would cross each other's paths since that day while remembering the promise me made together."

Within an instant, Kirie's memories came back from the time she had met Mirai. She had a surprised look on her face as she gazed straight at him. Shortly afterwards, she bowed, placing her hands on her lower thighs as she closed her eyes.

"I… I'm sorry!" she apologized. "She leaned back up with a panicked expression. "I, uh… I… Please forgive me, but I…" She swiftly turned around and ran out the door in a hurry.

"Kirie-chan!" Asuka shouted. She ran after Kirie, quickly turning back to face Satsuki and the others. "I'll go after her. It was nice talking with you again, Satsuki-san, Chihaya-san, everyone. Thank you for all you've done tonight and please have a good night." She bowed and left through the door to the VIP room.

Takuji looked at Satsuki and apologized. "Sorry, Satsuki. It was fun while it lasted, but I'm going to check on the girls."

Satsuki shook his head and smiled at the mint-haired young man. "No, don't worry about it. I would have liked to talk a bit more with you, Takuji, but it couldn't be helped this time. Have a safe trip back home. I'm looking forward to seeing you and Asuka again, along with everyone else from Rapunzel."

"Thanks, Satsuki!" Without another word, Takuji ran ahead and disappeared in an instant.

Chihaya's eyes widened a bit after witnessing the sight. "Well, I'll be. Teleportation, huh? That was a pretty smart move right there."

"What can you say?" Ryoichi said calmly. "He _is_ a magician, after all. It's no surprise to see something like that every once in a while. Besides, we haven't seen something like that in quite a while now."

Noel frowned nonchalantly. "It was a bit painful to see them go, though."

Satsuki nodded. There was a sad expression on his face as he stared in the direction Takuji, Asuka and Kirie had gone. "Yeah," he agreed. He felt lonelier than he had ever been in all his life. "It's just not the same without them."

Mirai looked down with the same expression. He felt a twinge of pain and sorrow in his heart as he stared at the floor. "Kirie…"

Ryoichi glanced at Mirai's slumped position and smiled, adding some advice for the youngest one in their circle of friends. "Make sure to apologize to her the next time you see her, Mirai. She's someone you don't want to lose. If you want, Satsuki can help you with finding where she works, so you can have someone relay a message to her later."

Mirai nodded without turning his head. "Yeah. Thanks, Ryo." The gaze in his eyes remained unchanged.

Nonetheless, it would be a long night for everyone, and they all knew that.

Meanwhile, Yuzuki was taking care of Ayame, who was fast asleep on the hotel bed with a towel on her forehead. She had a painful look rooted onto her face. Sweat was pouring down bit by bit and it seemed as if her fever wouldn't stop. However, it wasn't very life-threatening as it appeared.

Yuzuki placed his right hand over the towel with narrowed eyes. "She's still burning up, but not as much as before. Guess the alcohol really did some inflicting on her. At any rate, I'll have to change the towel about every fifteen minutes to half an hour to cool her head down. It must be painful just to go through a high fever at a time like this, especially since she was here for work." He shifted his position on the carpet floor and took out another towel from a cooler next to him, and soaked into in water, wringing it out before folding it and placing it on Ayame's head. He wasn't angry, but it was as if he was trying to say something nice, despite the bored and worried look on his face. "You better get well soon, you hear me?" he said in a moderate tone. He glanced at the night sky showing from the glass window on the wall. "You're missing out on something amazing, you know. So, hurry up and recover so that you can see this tomorrow."

Inside Takuji, Asuka, and Kirie's apartment, Kirie was sitting down with her back against the wall to the kitchen counter. She was also hugging her knees close to her chest, staring down deep in thought. This time, she had her glasses off.

Asuka walked towards her and crouched down next her. "Kirie-chan… It's going to be okay, isn't it? Between you and Mirai-kun… I'm sure you must have felt as though you did something horrible to him, but I don't think that Mirai-kun thinks of it that way. Without a doubt, I know he'll forgive you. In fact, I don't think he would ever hold a grudge against you for something trivial like this. So, don't be too hard on yourself. Think it over and have a talk with him later on, okay?"

Kirie nodded without taking a glance at the white-haired young woman next to her. "But… something that happened over three years ago… It really took my breath away for a moment. I even started to remember the time I made that promise with him." For a few seconds, a nostalgic smile formed on Kirie's face, which was something that she had rarely shown to others when she spoke about something from the past. "So many emotions ran through my mind like the speed of light. Truthfully, I was very happy to know that I wasn't the only one between us to think about it, but… A lot of things happened on the way, and you two know about it." She gripped the side around the middle of her upper arms with a strong urge to vent her frustration on something. "The thought of suddenly becoming lovers after so long just doesn't seem to be something as pure as it was back then. I have to set things straight with Mirai this time."

"Then, why don't you start off with telling us about the promise?" Asuka suggested encouragingly. "It might help you take your mind of things and start anew."

This time, she glanced to the side and nodded faintly. "Okay. I'll tell you. It all started back three years ago after I first met Mirai…"

_After the two of them pulled apart from their kiss, Kirie smiled somewhat teasingly at Mirai._

_"You're interesting," a seventeen-year-old Kirie giggled. "Really. I didn't expect you to actually blush like that, but I guess there's a first time for everything."_

_ Mirai stuttered embarrassingly. "I-I couldn't help it, okay?!" He pouted, making him resemble a puppy. "But then… Why did you ask to make a promise with me, Kirie?Aren't there any other guys you'd rather make that type of promise with?"_

_ "I thought it'd be kind of obvious to you, Mirai," Kirie said, narrowing her eyes to show a bit of her annoyance. "To experience a genuine love with a girl you've just met. Isn't that something any guy would want? But then, you seemed to be different." Kirie smiled. It made Mirai's heart flutter as if there was a set of butterfly wings on the back of his heart when he saw Kirie's expression. "I don't know if I can explain this clearly, but it felt as though you weren't like other guys. You can also say that I might have fallen for you on the spot." She closed her eyes, her smile becoming brighter than before. "Something like that. It might not be much, but that's how I felt when I saw you up close. I guess this must mean that love at first sight _does_ exist, after all."_

_ Mirai blushed and looked away. "Love at first sight, huh…?"_

So it's mutual for us, _he thought. _When I saw her eyes, I really felt like my heart had stopped in place. Was that the same for Kirie?

_"I can't wait to see you again, though," Kirie smiled eagerly. "Souseizouma's going through a lot of change lately, so there's been a lot of disputes between the two principals of the schools."_

_ Mirai tilted his head to his left. "It's the academy where Justy Nasty is held, right?"_

_ Kirie nodded. "That's right. Heroes versus demons. I initially joined Zouma Academy because I thought it was fun being evil, though. Even with the schools now combined, there's still a lot of tension between students from both sides of the school. Anyway, about our promise. Let's meet up sometime in the future. You know, after we both graduate high school. Then, we can become lovers without anyone pestering us."_

_ Mirai looked at the ground sadly. "Can't we… become lovers already? Wouldn't that have been easier than making the promise?"_

_ Kirie shook her head, having a similar expression on her face. "Sorry, Mirai. I can't. Right now, I still have things to settle with stuff from school. Besides," she looked at the setting sun in front of them, still frowning. "We use weapons at Souseizouma Academy. I'm practically fighting with a scythe every day over there, so I'm also training as a black knight. Things won't settle down for a while, so it'll most likely take a few years, or even decades, before they die down. So, wait for me, Mirai. When the day comes when we can finally be together without problems, let's become lovers."_

_ Mirai nodded happily. "Yeah. I'll never think about anyone else but you, Kirie."_

_ Kirie smirked. "Oh? Was there someone other than me that you like, Mirai? If so, just say it. We can see whether or not to stay with each other after I hear your answer."_

_ Mirai shook his head rapidly. "No! That's not what I meant at all! I've never liked anyone until I met you, Kirie."_

_ "Hmm… Is that so?" Kirie mused with narrowed eyes. "Well, see you around, Mirai It's about time for me to head back to school, anyway."_

_ Without another word, Kirie left, leaving a depressed Mirai to look after her departing figure. He felt as though it was the last time he would see Kirie._

It's as if she's leaving to fight a legendary battle, _Mirai thought. _Even though I can still see her, it's like she's going farther away, so much so, that I can never reach her. Maybe it's best to wait until we can see each other again. _A determined expression spread onto his face. _When that time comes, I'll definitely be by her side for as long as I can.

Back in the present, Kirie let out a small sigh. "Mirai's probably still thinking back to the time we made that promise to be together. I don't even know what I should say to him the next time I see him. There's so many things I haven't told him about. Remembering the day we met over three years ago is actually inflicting some damage to my heart. More than anything else, thinking about Mirai, or even seeing his image in my head, is really painful for me. I've always thought about him, but at the same time, I wanted to forget about him because it would hurt whenever I tried to think back to when I first saw him.

Asuka frowned. "You can't always close your heart towards him, Kirie-chan. It's even more excruciating to do so."

Shortly afterwards, Takuji walked over to the two of them, and held out a mug of hot milk to Kirie.

"Here," he said with a composed smile. "If you're feeling restless about it, you should at least drink something to calm yourself down and sort your thoughts. I can't really do much at the moment, but I can take care of those in need."

Kirie looked up and saw Takuji's kind gesture. "Takuji…" She held both of her hands out and slowly grasped the light green mug. Then, she smiled gently. Although she was still thinking about the situation she was in, she felt grateful and more relaxed than before. "Thank you." She placed the mug up to her lips and took a sip. "As usual, it's really delicious. Did you mix in some butter milk with it or something?"

"Well, I put in a bit, but not a lot," the mint-haired young man replied. He had another mug of hot milk, which was light blue, in his right hand and gave it to Asuka.

The white-haired magician took it with a gleeful smile. "Thank you, Takuji."

Takuji closed his eyes and smiled right back. "Anything for my lovely wife."

"Again with the lovey-dovey act," Kirie openly stated, narrowing her eyes with a cat smile on her face. "You two never miss a chance to show how much you love each other, do you?"

Takuji stood triumphantly with his hands on his hips. "Hehe! What can I say?" He had a content expression, having closed his eyes at that moment. "Love makes a magician stronger. There's nothing like a magician in love, my dear dark knight."

Kirie frowned in annoyance. "That's not what I wanted to hear. Aren't there any magicians with both human and magician parents? Your kind doesn't count them as hybrids, so they're still full magicians, right?"

"Of course!" Takuji exclaimed in English. He reverted back to speaking Japanese a second later. "Ah. But I don't mean that we have any magicians of that sort yet. We might someday, but we don't have at the moment. I just answered your second question first, though. It's only natural that they would be counted as full magicians since magicians are the first race to have been around. We might be from another world, but we're considered to be the first humans in the universe. You can also say that we're beings who come from Paradise."

Kirie tilted her head to her right. "Paradise? Well, you _do_ earn a ton of money without doing anything, that's for sure. _And_, you would more than likely top the looks department on Earth. I'd have to give you credit for a lot of things there, Takuji."

"Hahaha!" the mint-haired magician laughed. "Don't forget that we're here to help those in this world. Asuka and I will be living here for a long time, but we'll make some trips home every now and then."

Asuka smiled at the mug in her hands as she took a few drinks from it. Then, she turned towards Takuji and gave it to him. "Here you go."

Takuji took the mug and kept smiling, bringing the mug up to his lips and drinking from it. He had a satisfied expression as he pulled the mug away. "That really hits the spot. Nothing beats a warm drink you prepare yourself."

"Yeah," Kirie said in an irritated manner. "I bet receiving an indirect kiss from your spouse, who you just married a few hours ago, is the best for a magician."

Takuji smiled happily with his eyes closed. "It's like a reward since I'm the man in our marriage." He opened his eyes and glanced at Asuka. "Isn't that right, Asuka?"

"As long as it makes you happy, I wouldn't mind giving you another one," Asuka giggled. "Heehee!"

Seeing her two friends' newlywed banter, Kirie felt sick on the inside as she stared at them.

"…"

_I have to make sure I'm not in the same room with Asuka and Takuji next time, _she thought.

The next day in the hotel room Yuzuki had been looking after Ayame, said brunette steadily woke up in bed. She sat up and the towel on her forehead fell down. She caught it in her right hand. Then, she took a look around.

Ayame blinked at the sight of the room. "…"

_Where am I…? _she thought. _I remember passing out in front of everyone yesterday, but… I don't even know how I got here._

Then, Ayame heard a familiar voice.

"Yo." It was Yuzuki's. He had a smile on his face as he walked into the room. "Looks like you've made a full recovery."

Ayame glanced at Yuzuki with a bit of surprise. "Did you… take care of me last night?"

"Yeah," the actor confirmed. He had a serious expression etched onto his face within a split second after that. "Anyway, I have something to tell you."

Ayame tilted her head to her right. "? What is it?"

A wide grin spread across Yuzuki's face. "_I've_ got a proposition for you."

"Huh?" Ayame blinked a few times. "What… kind of proposition?"

"I'll let you interview me," Yuzuki declared. "You were here for work yesterday, but you didn't get much of a chance to do anything since you passed out so suddenly. A friend of mine had everyone get you a room, so you ended up here. Your fever was pretty high, so it was scorching the towels I changed way more than a stove."

Ayame look down at the chilling box where cold towels from the previous night laid. She could tell that they had all been used. Within a few seconds, a small smile manifested itself onto her face.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "I feel better now because of your time and efforts, Yuzuki-san."

"No need to add the –san part," Yuzuki dismissed. "I did what I could, so you don't have to think much about it. "Now that I think about it, I don't know your entire name, just your first name. What is it?"

Ayame glanced at Yuzuki and answered. "Ayame Irodori. I'm also the same age as you, Yuzuki."

"Then, you really didn't need to call my name with an honorific, but I guess you were just being polite," Yuzuki responded calmly. "I'll call you by your name from now on, so that's as much as I can do when I'm with you. I already called room service, so breakfast should be here soon."

Seeing how much Yuzuki did for her, Ayame couldn't help but smile and close her eyes. "Un. Thanks, Yuzuki."

Yuzuki saw the young woman's expression and smiled back casually. "Now, that's more like it."

At ten in the morning that day, Kirie entered the Rapunzel editing department and greeted everyone inside.

"Good morning!" she bowed and smiled chirpily.

The female employee who had cheered her on yesterday at the pool table glanced in her direction. "Oh, Kirie! Someone came by looking for you earlier."

Kirie tilted her head to the side. "Who was it?"

"A college student wearing a black and white blazer," the co-worker replied. "He said he wanted to speak with you and that he'd meet you at Rentomi College. You have to be there by 10:30, or so Ryoichi Hirose said. Do you know him or something?"

"Oh, um," Kirie began to answer before giving a nod. "Yeah. He's an acquaintance of mine. Takuji and Asuka also know him."

The co-worker smiled. "Oh, I see. Well, have a safe trip. If anything happens, you can call the office or the boss. Asuka's teaching today, so she can't answer her cell phone until noon."

"Thanks. I'll be on my way now." Kirie smiled back at the employee and turned around to leave the building.

Twenty minutes later, Kirie arrived at Mirai's college. She took a look around, searching for Mirai until she saw a familiar figure walking up to her. Kirie's eyes widened as she stared at Mirai, who was right in her line of vision.

"Mirai…" She gazed into the latter's eyes.

Mirai gazed right back. "Kirie…"

The two of them had a moment together as they looked at each other with the same expression. It seemed like forever before one of them broke the silence.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Starting Over… with a Confession?!**

Once she walked into Rapunzel, Kirie greeted the other employees inside the editing office.

"Good morning, everyone," she said with an eye smile. As usual, she wore her glasses, which made her look very beautiful for someone who didn't wear any before going to college and graduating. She tilted her head to her right and blinked. "? Is Takuji not here today?"

One of the female co-workers bowed upon seeing Kirie enter the building. "Good morning, Kirie." She glanced around and smiled when she turned her attention back towards the dark magenta-haired young lady. "To answer your question, he's out right now. He has a meeting with Kunihiko Aikawa in Azabu today. They're going to discuss some ways to improve some of the places there. They seem to get along well when it comes to business negotiations."

"I see," Kirie noted thoughtfully. "And I was just hoping that he'd be here when I came in. I was going to ask him something, but I guess I'll have to wait since he keeps his cell phone turned off during these meetings." She took out her cell phone and checked the time after flipping it open. It read: 10:03 a.m. Then, she closed it and placed it back into her right pocket located on her skirt. "Asuka's also teaching the preschool and elementary kids today, so she won't be here until noon. Takuji's probably going to be back around that time, so I guess they can have lunch together if I'm busy. By the way, did anything good happen to you today? You seem to be in a good mood."

The co-worker smiled and nodded. "Un. But it's not about me, though. Someone came by this morning after Takuji-sama left and left a message for you."

"A message?" Kirie asked. "Who was it from?"

She lowered her eyes, a bit annoyed from the last sentence.

_Takuji-sama? _She thought. _Well, I guess it's only natural for her to call him that since she's been in love with him since he started working here. Still, she's never addressed him with –sama before until now. Maybe she's too embarrassed to call him that whenever he's around. She also seems to be jealous of Asuka since he's never look at anyone but her. Plus, they just got married yesterday. I kind of feel bad for her, but what can you really do about a magician's love life if it's not something that actually involves you? Those two have been joined at the hip since before they met me. Besides, wouldn't it be a good thing to see the person you love happy, even if they don't love you back?_

She sighed, her eyelids fully opened.

_Maybe I don't really understand it because I'm not in love with a magician. Is there something that differs from like a non-immortal being and liking someone who _is_ immortal? I don't really understand it, but there must be something that's different. Humans are more complicated than I thought when it comes to living in the same place as a magician. Still, I wonder if you would only love a magician for eternity if you fell in love with them? Would you be doomed to never fall for anyone else? If so, I don't think I'd ever want to be in the same situation as her._

The co-worker closed her eyes with benevolence. "It was a college student who was wearing a black and white blazer." She opened her eyes and continued. "He wanted to meet you for a bit at Rentomi College today if you could make it. Ah." She remembered something and was generous enough to relay the rest. "There was also another person with him. I believe it was Ryoichi Hirose, the renowned novelist in the city. He said he would like you to meet the little guy by 10:30, but is that even possible? We have a lot of work to finish today without Takuji-sama."

_Again with the Takuji-sama! _Kirie shouted in her mind. She was already getting annoyed with how the employee was addressing the mint-haired magician and was not pleased with it. _Is she going to call him that every time he's not here? I don't want to be in the same office with her right now, but I'm going to have to bear it if I want to hear everything._

She smiled politely as always, hiding what her inner thoughts had to say. "Aha… Well, I guess work will have to come first. There're piles of papers to fill out and get done by the end of the day, so we shouldn't think about doing anything but our job, right?"

The co-worker placed her left hand on the side of her face and tilted her head to the side with a frown. "But… Won't you b keeping him waiting for a long time if you don't get going now? Everyone else and I can take care of the files while you're away."

"No, I can—" Kirie was soon cut off when the woman had come up behind her and started pushing her back.

The co-worker smiled and was still pushing Kirie towards the front doors. "Come on. You can count on us. Go and meet that cutie, okay?" Without any time to respond, Kirie was already outside and the female employee had turned her back to work on the stacks of papers in the office.

Kirie sighed. "I guess I have no choice. I'll have to get there soon, but that means I'll see Mirai again." She started trudging and began making her way towards the famous college.

Over half an hour later, she was finally there. She stopped and stared at her surroundings. Then, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure. It was Mirai, and he saw the dark magenta-haired girl. He walked up to her and stopped in his tracks. They were a few feet away from each other and the two of them were gazing into the other's eyes. It seemed like a long time had passed by before the silence between them broke.

"Kirie…" Mirai trailed off. He continued to stare into the beautiful blue eyes that belonged to his first love, but couldn't say anything else. He was entranced by the unchanging appearance Kirie had since they first met. It was as if Kirie would never age on the outside, but he knew in his heart that they were both human and had a short lifespan compared to an immortal being.

Kirie's eyes widened a bit as she gazed right back into Mirai's eyes. "Mirai…" She then realized that she still loved him, but could not bear to admit it if he were to ask her if she was still in love with him. Her lips formed a smile as she began to blush at the younger man. "I have something to say; will you hear me out?"

Mirai nodded. "Yeah. What is it?"

"I wanted to apologize for what happened yesterday," Kirie answered. "You see, a lot has happened since we last saw each other and I'm not exactly the same as I was then. I'm sure you already know this, but I've changed in the past three years. Everyone has, including you, Mirai. Anyway, I'm really sorry for everything." She gave a bow and looked at the college student. "I hope we can get along from now on as friends, instead of lovers. That's all I wanted to say."

Mirai's eyes widened but he immediately understood. He gave a sad nod and said, "Yeah. Let's do that. But…" He looked up and stared into Kirie's eyes once more. "Can we talk inside? There's still a lot that I have to say and I want you to hear me out on this."

Kirie blinked. "?" She wasn't sure what was going on, but after that, they ended up in the cafeteria, along with some other students as time passed by.

"Now that I think about it," Mirai mentioned, "it's been a while since we got to talk like this, hasn't it?" He was smiling like his did around everyone else around him and was back to his usual self. "So, how have you been since then?"

Kirie smiled back. "I've had my fair share of fun and games before graduating from Souseizouma. It was nice and all, but I quickly moved on from everything I experienced there. I met Takuji and Asuka after that and they asked me if I wanted to join the Rapunzel editing team, so I agreed and went to college to learn more about journalizing. It was really great; I'd never thought it would be fun to take classes there. I graduated this spring, and I'm sure you can guess how old I am right now."

"You're twenty, right?" the college student asked. "That's amazing. I'm going to graduate from here at the same age next spring on my birthday, but I guess you'll already by twenty-one by the time I leave Rentomi. You're a year older than me, so I wouldn't expect you to alter time and stay the same age until then. It would destroy the balance of the world, after all."

Kirie laughed. "Aha! It's not like I could ever do that, though. I'd probably have to be on Takuji and Asuka's level, but changing time would be even worse than just not doing anything at all. Besides, the two of us are only human, so we could never do something like that. Still, I'm glad you're speaking on logical terms, Mirai. It makes me happy to at least have a normal conversation with someone who isn't like the people at Rapunzel. They tend to be weirder than you'd think they'd be."

"Is that so?" Mirai smiled lightly when he heard those words. "Then, it was worth asking to talk with you for a bit, Kirie. It's been on my mind for a while, but I still need to say this before the day's over." He looked into Kirie's eyes and kept smiling. "I'm sorry for what happened, too. It was my fault that you ran off like that, and I don't know if you can ever forgive me for that, but I really am sorry. I wanted to let you know today when I went with Ryo to your department."

Kirie shook her head slightly. "It's okay. I was just shocked that you would still remember everything, so it was also my fault for going home like that. Thank you, though. It was really nice seeing you again after all these years, so it was a good thing you brought it up in the VIP room. I know I've caused you and the others some trouble, so I'll give my condolences to you. I even made those two run after me."

Mirai closed his eyes. "Hopefully we won't have another incident like that one anytime soon. It wasn't too serious in the end, but who knows? One of these days it'll probably happen again to someone like Yuzu. Definitely not Noel since he's always so bland around everyone."

"Haha," Kirie giggled. "Hopefully not. It'd be even worse if everyone got involved in another one."

As they continued their chat, a few students came over to their table.

"Oh? Mirai, you're already here? It's not even time for lunch," a male who was around Takuji and Asuka's age blinked when he arrived at the table.

Mirai acted as carefree as his looks would deem him. "Yeah, I had some more free time than I thought I would. But it's almost time for it, right? You guys came a little early today."

"We wanted to sit with you like we always did," a female student answered. She closed her eyes and kept smiling at the nineteen-year-old boy. She took a set and sat across from Mirai; the two guys with her sat down as well. "So, who's the girl next to you? Your babysitter or something?" She observed and glanced at Kirie and Mirai back and forth before her eyes landed on the college student across from her. "Or maybe she's your older sister? Well, she could be both, so it wouldn't matter, either way."

Mirai waved his right hand as if to deny it, which he did. "No, no. You've got it all wrong." He glanced at Kirie and introduced her to his friends. "This is Kirie Kuroki, a friend of mine. She's also one of the editors at Rapunzel. You know, the most successful editorial department in all of Roppongi."

The girl's eyes widened in surprise. "Eh?! And how do you know her?! You've never told us anything like this before."

"Aha… It's kind of a long story." Mirai sweat-dropped nervously. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you about it."

"So, is she your girlfriend?" the other male student asked curiously. "She's really pretty, so it could be that you're actually dating her instead. You don't seem to have one, but… it could be possible."

Mirai blushed and his mouth dropped in an exasperated manner. "What?!"

The previous guy laughed. "You know he's just kidding, Mirai. Don't let it catch you off-guard. He's always got that little-to-interested face around everyone, so he's more of a straightforward type of guy."

Kirie smiled. "Well, I'm not Mirai's girlfriend. Anyway, I'll take my leave here. I have to get back to work soon." She stood up and got up from her seat. Then, she bowed. "It was nice meeting you all. Have a good day!" She pushed in her chair and strolled out the cafeteria.

The students turned around and looked in the direction Kirie had walked out before turning back towards Mirai.

"Well, that was nice," the first guy stated delightedly. He clasped his hands together and was very supportive of Mirai's so-called "friendship" with Kirie. "If you two were actually going out, I might have at least given you some tips, l'il bro."

Mirai sweat-dropped once more. "But we're not even going out. We've known each other for a few years, that's all."

_Liar! _He scolded himself angrily in his mind. He knew that wasn't how he truly felt, but had denied it for Kirie's sake. He frowned, another blush coming onto his cheeks. _That's not how I really feel, but I have to hold back on everything since that's what Kirie wants. If it weren't for this, I'd be able to say it properly._

The female student gave a relieved smile, closed her eyes for a second, and opened them again. "Well, I'm glad you're not dating anything, Mirai. I don't know what I would do if you were taken."

Mirai frowned awkwardly. His blush had already faded by the time he saw the girl's smile. "Um… Thanks. But I don't even want to date you. I can't think of you as more than a friend no matter how hard I could try to. In fact, I actually have someone else in mind, just not you. I'm sorry."

"Wow, Mirai." The female student who was around Kirie's age lowered her eyes in discontent. "I never thought you'd shoot anyone down that easily. And here I thought I might have had a chance with you." She sighed. "I guess my luck's run out when I think about it. It'd be a bit of a crime if I were to take you for granted. I really need to consider the possibility of dating a younger guy before trying to make a move next time."

Mirai couldn't help but feel bad for the girl in front of him. "Sorry. I didn't mean to reject you that way. I was just—"

The girl held out her hand, which resembled a stop sign due to the fact that it was facing Mirai. "Look. There's no need to apologize." She smiled, knowing that she could never stand a chance against Kirie. "I've known that you've had your eyes on a certain someone for a long time just by looking at you. You've always had a distant expression when you stare off to the sky, or anywhere else. We can all tell whenever we see you, so you should at least go for it and confess your love for the reporter—I mean, editor. She has the appearance of someone you'd only get to meet once in a lifetime."

The upfront student nodded. "It's better than not conveying your feelings at all. Go for it, Mirai."

Seeing the encouraging characteristics the three sitting near him were giving off, Mirai's eyes widen before a happy smile appeared on his face. "Thanks, guys. I'll tell Kirie how I really feel about her. You can count on it."

As he felt inspired to profess his love later on, Mirai enjoyed every second he spent with the older college students around his table. They had looked out for him since his second semester during his first year at Rentomi College, and would continue to be there for him until he graduated from campus.

It took several minutes before Kirie finally came back to Rapunzel. When she entered the doors, Takuji was already back with Asuka at his left side. The two of them greeted the dark magenta-haired girl when she arrived.

"Kirie!" Takuji smiled elatedly. "You're back! Took you long enough. We had lunch together without you. Bet you took some pretty slow steps from where you were, huh?" He nodded with his eyes closed, still smiling. "Un, un. I get it. You were exhausted, but you wanted to come back to me and Asuka at all costs, so you dragged your aching feet all the way here." He whole body shook like a rocking water bottle before rivers of tears ran down his eyes like an anime character's. He opened them and looked at Kirie with 'water' flowing down them. "My little girl wanted to come back home safety to her father's side no matter what…!" He started bawling, holding the sides of his face with the palms of his hands. "Oh, Kirie…! I'm so sorry! It was my fault you had to do this in the first place! I don't think I can ever beg for your forgiveness, Kirie…" He sobbed, holding a handkerchief up to the bottom of his left eyelid, which was closed. It was a very dramatic sight to see, but it was something that occurred randomly most of the time. "Uuu… I'm the worst dad in the world, aren't I…?"

While Asuka smiled and tried to comfort her husband, Kirie sweat-dropped with narrowed eyes.

"Uh, you know," she started to respond, "I'm not actually holding anything against you, Takuji. But there _is_ one thing I'm curious about. When exactly did you become my father?" She frowned, tilting her head to her right. "I know we're roommates and all, but aren't you a year older than me? I mean, I'm really grateful that you've looked after me for quite some time now, but…" She glanced in the direction where the crying scene took place without moving her head and felt a bit nervous at seeing her boss look like a little puppy in front of everyone. "You don't have to go through all that trouble just because I came back a little later than usual. We're friends, so… It would really make me happy if you stopped crying for a while and go back to your normal self, okay?" She quickly went on to the next sentence. "Ah. But that doesn't mean that I'm trying to hurt your feelings or anything. I'm just saying that you'll ruin your good looks if you keep at it. Anyway, I really like you the way you are—yeah, that's it!"

The mint-haired CEO looked up with tears still in his eyes, which was very adorable in a way that pulled the female employees' (and perhaps even a majority of the males') hearts towards him. Kirie could sense the heat rising up in the air as everyone else stared at the newlywed.

"Really…?" Takuji asked. His expression was so cute that many palpations were spreading through the inside of the office.

Everyone except for Takuji himself, Asuka, and Kirie were unaffected by the male magician's pretty face. It was a sensation that made their hearts beat faster and the blushes on their face wouldn't go away as they keep looking at him.

Kirie nodded nonchalantly. "Un. Everyone… Er…" She was mortified in an irritated way at the sight of having to see her co-workers secretly (or not) fawn over their boss"…Likes you, I guess. It might be kind of hard to tell most of the time, but they really… _respect_ you, Takuji."

A second later, Takuji's tears disappeared and he smiled. His expression had come back to its fullest and Kirie knew that it was the one he usually had.

"Yeah," Takuji responded. "I know."

Kirie's eyes widened a bit when she realized what was going on. "Takuji…"

_He was putting on a show for everyone, _she thought. Then, a smile appeared on her face and her expression softened. _So that's what it was. He was only trying to put me in a good mood. Ahaha… That rascal. He really is a good CEO, after all. Taking care of his employee like that. But that's what everyone at Rapunzel likes about him. He's good at pulling off a stunt like that, but in the end, it works out just fine._

"By the way," Takuji reminded, "did you go see Mira and make up with him? You weren't here by the time we came back, so I figured you might have actually gone to see him."

_That woman didn't even tell him, did she? _Kirie's eyes narrowed as a crosshurt manifested on the side of her forehead. _Why that little…!_

Kirie nodded with a normal expression. "Yeah. I went to his college this morning while you were at a business meeting. We agreed to be friends, rather than lovers this time."

"I assume things went well for you two," Takuji proclaimed. "You don't seem to be bothered by anything this time, so I'm hoping that you'll keep on smiling while you're here."

Asuka had a thin line where her mouth was. "Hmm… I don't think it might solve any problems you'll have later on, though. Are you really sure everything will be fine for the both of you, Kirie-chan?"

A female co-worker nodded with closed eyes and folded arms. "Sou, sou." She opened her eyes and smile at Kirie as she glanced in the dark magenta-haired girl's direction. "Mirai's actually a well-known underground dog, you know."

Kirie blinked. "What do you mean? I've never heard about any of that before."

Suddenly, the co-worker's lips curled up into a cat smile as if she was trying to lure Kirie in. "Oh~? Don't you know about your 'friend', Kirie? He's actually a conman, or so I've heard. Some of our employees over here have actually seen Mirai Kageyama do some things to trick others into getting what he wants. I've also seen him a few times while I was doing some undercover work for our company. He's much more clever than he looks."

Asuka frowned. "That's not what I meant when I asked Kirie-chan about it. I actually support the two of them. Mirai-kun's also a friend of ours, so it shouldn't matter whether or not he's doing something like that. He's a really good kid at heart."

"Oh ho~," the co-worker glanced at Asuka and smirked. "So, what you're saying is that he's free to do whatever he wants, even if he were to go as far as to rob us of our wealth?" She had a stern expression shortly afterward. "I don't think so. That little boy might be someone you and the boss know on a personal basis, but he has _got_ to be stopped. What if he decides to bankrupt us? What are we going to do then?—Let him continue to run wild like a safari beast? Then, what do we do about our jobs? We can't just switch over to Cinderella! As young as their editorial department is, I don't want to lose to anyone from there. It would hurt my pride more than anything if we were to suddenly be under their chief's employment. We're the eldest of all the tabloid offices here in Roppongi. We shouldn't have to bend to their mercy, Asuka-san. We're the ones who have reached beyond the top of the others, so it's up to us to keep ourselves from falling down to the bottom of the pit."

"I know," the white-haired young woman understood the co-worker's feelings, "but Mirai-kun's not like that. He hasn't even done something to harm others that way."

Takuji smiled brightly before saying anything for a couple seconds. "Still, he would make a great maou (魔王; dark lord/king), wouldn't he? Mira's like a resistance fighter. In fact, he could be the ultimate one this world has to offer! Better than that guy whose father wanted him to be one at Souseizouma, huh, Kirie?" He tilted his head to the right in a swift motion as he displayed an eye smile towards Kirie.

Kirie caught sight of Takuji's smile a little before she nodded. "Yeah. Something like that." Then, she smiled back acknowledging the mint-haired magician's words. "You have a creative way of putting things, Takuji. It's like you're a positive thinker every second of the day."

Takuji grinned and held out a thumbs-up with his right hand. "That's because I _am_ one. You know what they say: Geniuses are the rarest ones to come by out of all the people in the universe, and I'm one of them." He then made a gesture and had his eyes closed again. It seemed like he was side fanning the air back and forth with just his right hand. "Go on. You can bask in my awesomeness all you want. I won't mind."

Kirie and the female co-worker looked away with awkward smiles on their faces. While Kirie was turned around to her left, the co-worker was facing their right.

"No thanks," the both rejected simultaneously. It was funny enough that their employer was having fun over at the top of the stairway with his wife by his side, but it was even _more_ interesting that he received a dejected answer from two of his own workers.

Soon enough, Takuji's shock showed on his face as though a bolt of thunder had struck him right then and there. "…!"

Things continued like they typically did, and the others employees felt sorry for their boss. They knew Takuji as a good person at heart, despite all the dramatic things he did in the building, and they even loved him for doing what he did. It was painful seeing him have an oversensitive reaction to anything, but they saw it coming more or less.

Meanwhile, at Cinderella, Ayame was finishing the article she had been offered to write and publish. She kept typing at her computer and was nearly done with everything for the first part. However, there was something on her mind that she could not get out of her head. It was Yuzuki Kitaoji, one of the most famous celebrities in the city. She remembered the events from that very morning and was still working away rapidly while somewhat lose in thought. Her eyes narrowed as she kept at it.

_It really wasn't a dream, was it? _She asked deep within her mind. _Yuzuki had given me the opportunity to interview him, and so I did. But… His smile was so kind when he told me about it. I felt as though I could trust him wholeheartedly, and I knew for sure that he wasn't lying. Furthermore, I'm sure of it. Of every guy I've ever met, Yuzuki is the only one who was able to make my heart flutter. Not once before I awoke to find him in the same room with me that I had ever felt that way before. And I'm only on the first sixteen pages of the magazine. I don't want to take this for granted, but I'm sure his fans would be more likely to pick the copies up after it's all finished._

She nodded to herself and did as much as she could before she heard a voice snap her out of her concentration.

"I see that you're working hard on the project for Yuzuki Kitaoji, but try to take a break every now and then, will you?" It was her boss, Atsushi Jinnai who had hired her the day before. He had a grin on his face as he stood behind the brunette. "You the new employee here, so you should take it easy. Besides, you just recovered from your fever this morning, so you can get off anytime soon. I'll even give you my permission for it."

Ayame frowned. "Thanks, but I'd rather work on this. Yuzuki's already said I could, so it should be fine, right?" She turned around and continued to type at her usual pace, which was faster than any of the other workers' at Cinderella. "Why don't you take the rest of the night off, Jinnai-san? I can finish what I'm doing in another hour, so you can go ahead and leave."

Atsushi rubbed the back of his head with his left hand and sighed. "You really _are_ a hard worker, aren't you, Irodori? It's no wonder you're cut out for this job. But you know, you're a beauty not a lot of girls can compare to. I also know your backstory at least, so please think about yourself more. Anyway, you'll let your good looks go to waste before you leave this world if you keep this up. You have such nice, long hair, but it doesn't compare to Asuka's since it's still above waist length." He let out another sigh and continued. "I'm pretty sure you've really attracted Yuzuki Kitaoji just by being within his line of sight yesterday night. Tsk, tsk. I feel bad for him if he actually has any feelings for you. You're basically a pair of star-crossed strangers who met at the party, and that's led to this."

Without looking back, Ayame said, "You're quite a perverted old man, aren't you, Jinnai-san? I'm sure this is why you don't have a girlfriend at your age. That must explain why you're still single, too."

"Ggh...!" The thirty-three-year-old was appalled by the young woman's insults and felt as if he had been struck by an arrow through his heart when he heard those words. He reached towards his heart with his right hand in a shaking manner. "Irodori… You… really are a cruel woman, aren't you…?"

Ayame didn't look away from her PC and finished the rest as fast as she could. "Only because I know how to play it straight." She was too absorbed into her career at the moment to put any shape into her expression. "I'm striving for the best I can do with my own abilities, so you should be more of an employer. That's all. If you don't have anything else to say, go home."

The rest of the night played out perfectly for those who were continuously working at Cinderella, and it remained that way. Thus, it became a success for them, along with those from Rapunzel. A few hours later, the workers from both soon closed up, with Cinderella shutting out its company lights before Rapunzel did. It gave many of the employees a sense of accomplishment since they did their jobs all the way throughout the night, putting hundreds of smiles on their faces as they made their ways back to their houses.

Later that night, Mirai was waiting outside under the full moon. He stared at it, taking in the sight of the bright light that emitted from it. A few minutes later, he heard footsteps on the grass and turned in the direction of them. Standing in front of his eyes was Kirie, who he had called out a bit earlier after she left the building she worked at. She wore casual clothing and didn't have her glasses on this time.

"Kirie…" His eyes widened before becoming a serious expression. "There's something I need to tell you. I really want you to listen to what I have to say, so please stay where you are and don't run away like last time."

Kirie nodded. "What is it?" She was curious to find out what Mirai had to say to her and stayed in place.

Mirai gazed into Kirie's eyes as several emotions danced around within his chest. It took nearly a sixth of a minute before he said anything. "I've decided that I don't want us to remain as friends forever. That's why, I'll say this to you. I've always loved you Kirie, and I still do. So, please go out with me."

"Huh?" Kirie's eyes widened when she heard Mirai's confession. She didn't think that he would actually profess his love to her, but she realized that his words were indeed real as she stared back into his eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**The Unstoppable Feelings that Bring Our Hearts Closer to Each Other**

Mirai stared fixedly into Kirie's eyes as his chest overflowed with many emotions. His heart was beating faster and he looked into the blue eyes that reflected a gemstone's light. "Kirie," he said, beginning his sentence, "I love you. I always have, and I still love you, even today. My feelings for you have never died out since the day we met, and they never will. S, please…" His feelings grew stronger and his eyes lower slightly to convey what he had to say next. "…Please go out with me, Kirie!" He looked down with a sad expression on his face. "I know you might not think of me as more than the boy you met three years ago, but…" He looked up and gazed into Kirie's eyes again. "I want you to at least give me a chance to prove my worth to you. Let's start a relationship together."

Kirie's eyes widened at the sudden confession. Deep into the depths of her mind, she could tell that what he had told her were his true feelings. She knew that Mirai was still in love with her and she also felt the same way, but…

"I can't," she looked down with mixed emotions reflecting in her eyes. She shook her head without facing Mirai. "I just can't go out with you, Mirai. It would only cause the both of us pain. If we're with each other, it would become too unbearable for us to even be happy. Don't you think so?"

Mirai quickly realized Kirie's sorrow and frowned. "I would never want to hurt you, Kirie. I'll protect you with everything I have, so don't think about feeling any pain from being together with me. I'll always be there to shield you from anyone who tries to harm you." Seeing Kirie turn her head to her left without responding, Mirai stood there for a few seconds before stepping forward and embracing the girl he loved. "Please, trust me, Kirie. I promise I'll protect you no matter what. You won't have to think about anything else if you're with me. You're the only one I love."

Although Kirie did not say anything, she stayed in the heartbreaking enfold, and nodded. Mirai's body heat conducted right through hers and it was a warm sensation that made her happy but also concerned for the former. Mirai couldn't see it, but there was a tender smile that showed on Kiries face as she hugged him back.

They didn't let go of the other for a while, which made it seem like time had stopped in place. Somewhere in Kirie's heart, she felt a twinge of guilt and pain that resonated inside her chest. She had a presentiment and was still worried about what was going to happen to her, or even worse, Mirai. A look of doubt spread onto her face as she held the youth in her arms, wrapping them around his back. Mirai sense Kirie's anxiety and closed his eyes. As the night went by, it was a going to be a long time before they let go of their beloved.

**The following day**

Out in the city of Roppongi, Mirai and Kirie were holding hands in public. Kirie frowned and turned towards her right, avoiding any eye contact with the college student.

"Hey, Mirai," she began. "Are you really sure we should be doing this? We're not in a private area or any place with fewer people, so it's a little embarrassing to hold hands while we're here. Everyone's watching, you know!"

However, Mirai only smiled without a care in the world. "Haha! Kirie, you're too tense about this. We're dating, so it shouldn't be a problem, right? Try to be yourself while we're out. It wouldn't hurt to let everyone else know that we're a couple."

"Yeah, but…" Kirie trailed off hesitantly. She was not confident about the idea of becoming lover the next day, despite the fact that she reluctantly agreed to be in a relationship with Mirai. "What if someone finds out about this? For example, your parents… What if they don't want us to be together?" She glanced at Mirai with a worried expression on her face. "If they discover our relationship, they might force you to leave me and study abroad so that we won't see each other again."

When Mirai saw his girlfriend's expression, his eyes widened. "Kirie…" It was only a short matter of time before he started to laugh a little. "Ahahaha. Don't worry about a thing. Didn't I tell you that yesterday? I never knew you were such a worrywart before now, but I'm glad you've been thinking about me." His smile became softer as he looked at Kirie. "It's going to be all right, Kirie. I'm here with you, remember? Anyway, my dad wouldn't break us up. He'd understand that you're older than me, and I'm sure he'd love to meet you one day."

Kirie sighed. "Is that how it is? I think your family's more laid back than I would have guessed. But is it really okay for us to be together? Aren't there girls who like you?"

"What, are you jealous already?" Mirai asked innocently. "I don't have an interest in anyone else but you, Kirie. Anyway, to answer your question, there have been girls who have liked me, but I never paid any attention to them. Besides, I've even turned them down whenever they asked me out. Things should be fine now." He closed his eyes and tilted his head to his left with the smile he had on his face. "My side's A-OK. How about yours?"

Kirie frowned once more. "…That's not what I meant. I feel like someone else would be more suited for you, Mirai. Wouldn't you _think_ so if you were in my place?"

"Aw, come on, Kirie!" Mirai blurted out. "I wouldn't think twice about going out with you!" Then, he pouted. "I really mean it when I say that I want to be with you, but you have negative views on how things will work out." His usual expression appeared on his face as he continued. "Look, Kirie. It's not about how we look to others, but rather how we show our love for each other. What matters in a relationship between two people is how you feel about your partner. That's what love is. Trust me; I would never want to leave you, even for a second. If our love ended right here, I'd regret separating from you. You're my one true love, Kirie."

As she gazed into Mirai's eyes, Kirie's eyes widened. Her uncertain emotions were soon filled with hope as she smiled at him. "Mirai…" She nodded at the younger boy. "Un. Thank you."

Mirai smiled back and closed his eyes. "You're welcome. I want to see you smile forever, okay?"

Kirie nodded again, and the two of them made their way towards an ice cream shop for their date.

On the other hand, Yuzuki and Ayame were at a flower field to finish the job Ayame had been assigned to do. She had been taking pictures of the wavy-haired celebrity since the day before, and was currently resuming from where she had left off.

"About a few more shots before we wrap things up for the day," the brunette declared. She smiled and said, "Well, not really. We still have tonight for work, right?"

Yuzuki frowned. "Yeah. It's gonna be a real pain in the neck to get interviewed, especially at night. Those who are in the entertainment industry have to put on fake smiles and do what their agencies tell them to." A smile appeared on his face. "But hey, that's what we do, and it's not that hard to pull something like this off in front of everyone. I have a reputation to keep up for several years to come by, so I'll still be well-known in Tokyo before I hit my forties. Maybe I'll still be in showbiz by the time I'm eighty. Who knows? You might become famous at that age, too."

Ayame let out a laugh as she answered the twenty-four-year-old male. "Aha. I'd rather not be. This is just a job I want to do, that's all. There's not much for someone outside your field to accomplish before they die, but sometimes it's actually worth trying. Living a civilian life isn't too difficult for someone like me, and it's fun every now and then to do something you haven't done before."

Yuzuki tilted his head to his left with a perplexed expression. "? You've never done something like write some coverage about someone before?"

Ayame shook her head. "I have, but it's more like I haven't been put in charge of someone outside my league until now. It's really amazing to even receive an opportunity like this. It just brightens up my day knowing that I'll at least get somewhere with this career. I haven't been able to do anything this important at my previous company." She looked down, thinking back to her memories. "Back then, I was hospitalized for a year and three months. It seemed as if I would never be able to reach outside no matter how long I waited to get discharged from there. I would always look out the window in my room." With a sad smile, she added, "It was so lonely that I wished someone would save me from being trapped in there. Of course, my friend and roommate, Fuko would always come and visit me. But… because she couldn't stay the whole time, I felt like breaking down every second without her."

Tears formed in Ayame's eyes and fell down her cheeks. She brought the back of hand up to her face and wiped the tears coming down the right side of her face and did the same with her other hand. Yuzuki's eyes widened a bit at the sight of Ayame crying several feet in front of him, and he walked over to her, bending down on the young woman's left. He turned his head towards her and sighed. Then, he faced forward.

"Well," he breathed, "there's not much I could have really done to free you from there when you were hospitalized for what seemed like an eternal hell." His shoulder slumped as he stared at the sky. "There _is_ one thing I can tell you, though. If I had met you back before you were sent to that empty room, I would have definitely taken you out without a second thought."

He turned his head to his right and Ayame looked up, gazing into his eyes with surprise as she took her hands away from her face.

"Really?" she asked as the rest of her tears slide down her visage. "You would have done that for me, Yuzuki?"

Another frown formed on the actor's face. "Isn't it obvious? Of course I would. You're…" He caught himself before saying anything else. Then, a couple tints of pink appeared on his cheeks as he got a close look of the hazel eyes staring back at his own eyes. He quickly averted his gaze before retorting in a flustered manner. "I-It's something anyone would have done if their feelings for you were strong enough. I'm sure your friend felt sorry for not being able to do anything for you, but I would have gotten you out no matter what. You can trust my words on that."

Ayame soon realized something as she stared at Yuzuki's posture. He was now sitting on the ground, holding his knees, and would not look at her and hid his expression away from her sight. She knew that there was only one reason for him to behave like that and she had to say it for him to hear.

"Yuzuki, do you… Do you like me?" she asked cautiously as a blush formed on her face.

Yuzuki's eyes widened once more as he looked at the editor next to him. Then, he stared into Ayame's eyes, while his were chockfull of emotions for her. He confirmed the inquiry after nodding.

"Yeah," he said, having a red blush on his face this time. "I like you, Ayame. Ever since the night of the party, I've started to develop feelings for you. The moment I saw your sleeping face when we were alone together in the hotel room, I couldn't help but think about you."

He gazed into Ayame's eyes for a few more seconds before closing his own. He was slowly leaning forward and Ayame closed her eyes, moving towards Yuzuki. Their lips found one another's and touched, their hearts melting with a soft and warm sensation with each lock their mouths made. Never before had their chests overflowed with love and affection for anyone else until that very moment. Their hands were touching and they were at the beautiful scene for hours before finishing up with their passionate kisses.

Later that night, Ayame was sitting in front of her desk in a daze. She placed her fingers up to her lips, still mesmerized from the feeling of Yuzuki's lips.

Just then, a voice called out to her and she knew who it was.

"Working late again, Irodori?" Atsushi asked as he entered the room. "You know, it's going to put you back in your bed if you don't stop to take a break from work soon. You'll end up running a high fever before you know it."

Ayame shook her head without looking back to face her boss. "No, that's not it. It's just…"

"What? Are you thinking about Yuzuki Kitaoji right now?" the man pressed further.

Ayame looked down at her keyboard. "I guess you can say that. I can't stop thinking about him no matter how much time passes by."

Atsushi blinked. "Don't tell me you've fallen for him. He's a celebrity, and reporters tend to follow his kind everywhere whenever he takes a step in their presence. You can't delay things just because of that, Irodori. You're a member of Cinderella; you have a duty to fulfill as an editor here, and we need you!"

Ayame turned around and frowned. "I know. I'm not even letting this affect my job, Jinnai-san. I'm still focused, but Yuzuki's all that comes to mind lately. Whether or not I'm working on this magazine right now also relates to him in every way possible. Is that not what an editor's job is supposed to be? Are we not allowed to think about our clients when we're at work?"

Atsushi gulped at the serious situation he put himself in. "Er… I know that you like him and all, but don't let it get to you, okay? This is just a step toward our goal to keep our company going, and to beat Takuji's team." He nodded firmly. "Yeah, that's it. We're in for the win. Our competition is still taking place in these harsh times, so we need to build up a leading foundation for ourselves."

"You mean, for _your_ reassurance." Ayame's eyes narrowed in an unpleasant way with her mouth becoming a thin line. "Can't you just let it go? We all know that with Takuji in business, there's no way you could ever win against him. He's a magician, after all."

There was yet another heart-wounding effect on the editor-in-chief. "Ugh…!" He reached out with his right hand towards Ayame, relentlessly getting pounded with the beauty's words. "Irodori, you… You are a cold woman, aren't you…?" He felt back, landing on the tile floor with a soft thud.

"As cold as a woman _can_ be," Ayame frowned, staring at the man whom she called her boss. "Unlike you, Jinnai-san, I've still got my work cut out for me. I _am_ a young employee here, so I'm always going to be your junior for as long as I'm working at Cinderella."

Rivers of tears flowed down the (almost) middle-aged man's eyes as he laid where he was while he made a crying sound. "You're so mean! I'm not _that_ old, you know! Uu… Why does it always have to be me…?"

Ayame sighed, shaking her head with closed eyes. "Get a grip, will you? You're so pathetic for the CEO of this editorial department. It really makes me wonder if you really are in charge of everything here."

It was going to be another long night before work ended, which would be in a short amount of time for the employees at Cinderella.

Asuka smiled at Kirie inside the apartment. "You look nice today. Are you going out with Mirai-kun, Kirie-chan?"

Kirie nodded. "Yeah. He said he'd take me to dinner since we're officially dating now." She looked at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. "It'll be our second date as a couple." She closed her eyes with a cheerful expression on her face.

"Sou ka," the white-haired young woman glanced contently at the dark magenta-haired girl. "You should enjoy the time you have together. It sounds fun. Perhaps Takuji and I should go on a date, as well. We could even try to join in with you two later on for dinner."

Kirie frowned. "Unfortunately, I'd rather not have Takuji say anything to humiliate us at the table, so that's a no. It'd be too weird having him around, so maybe you should find another restaurant to eat at if you feel like going out tonight, Asuka."

"But Takuji's a lovable person to be with," Asuka replied. "He's like the bright sun that pulls everyone to him."

Kirie sighed. "That's the problem. Takuji attracts too much attention. Don't you remember what happened yesterday in the office? He practically made everyone else fawn over him just by acting in front of us. His tears weren't even real."

"I'll have you know, my tears are one hundred percent genuine," the mint-haired magician told the younger woman in the house. He walked down the stairs and looked at Kirie. "Don't think that what I do in front of other people is completely fake. I'm Takuji Uramoto, after all. As your father, I'm obliged to make you have a good time, so you'll smile more often. That's my role while I'm still taking care of you, Kirie." He folded his arms together and nodded. "Un. That's what fathers are for."

Kirie narrowed her eyes. "Takuji, you aren't my father. We're a year apart, so you're just a friend I've known since I was eighteen. Besides, you don't even act like a dad."

Takuji smirked with his eyes closed. "But I'm _better_ than your father, right? He doesn't even compare to me and my good looks."

"Uh, yeah," Kirie responded with her left hand on the back of head. "You're swell."

At that moment, the doorbell rang and Kirie rushed towards the door. She placed her hand on the doorknob and opened the door, revealing Mirai's smiling figure in front of her.

Her eyes widened as she looked at him. "Mirai… Um…"

"Hey," Mirai greeted. "I came to get you. Are you ready, Kirie?"

Kirie nodded happily. "Yeah. Let's go."

"Have fun!" Asuka waved at the handsome college who showed up at the doorway.

Takuji grinned with opened eyes. "Make sure to bring her home before ten, Mirai. You have a curfew, too, don't you?"

"Yeah," Mirai affirmed. "You can count on me to walk Kirie home safely. It's dangerous for a girl to be out by herself, so I'll make sure no one lays a hand on her."

Takuji gave the youth a thumbs-up, then he waved. "Yeah! That's my boy!"

Mirai smiled jubilantly before taking Kirie's hand and walking out the door with her. Soon enough, they made their way to the restaurant that he reserved for the two of them and had a lovely dinner together.

"Thanks for agreeing to go out on a date here with me," Mirai smiled lightly at Kirie, who was sitting across from him. "I really wanted to go everywhere with you today, so I hope it's not too much trouble for you."

Kirie smiled back. "It wasn't any trouble at all. I've always wanted to go somewhere with you. When I think about it now, I'm glad I got to be with you, Mirai. I feel like I could go anywhere with you when we're together."

"Kirie…" Mirai felt a blush appearing on his face as his eyes had a softer look to them. "From now on, you can rely on me. I'll always be there to protect you no matter what."

Kirie found herself blushing and nodded. "Un. Thanks, Mirai."

As they chatted, the two of them felt closer than they were three years ago when they first met. It was a warm sensation that brought their feelings together and filled their hearts with the love they had for each other. As long as they had one another, they didn't have to worry about anything. With the night sky lit up with beautiful lights from every building in Roppongi, it only enhanced their feelings as they held hands and looked out the window together.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**When Drama Ensues, Tears Begin to Fall**

**The Point of View of Kirie Kuroki**

Two weeks have passed since Mirai and I started going out. It's been relaxing around him and I've been thinking about him more often. I would never have imagined that we would actually start a romance together until now. After we parted ways three years ago, I would think about him from time to time, but not as much as I am today. I wonder if anyone else felt the same way I did after meeting their significant other. However, I'm glad that Mirai chose me as his girlfriend. If he hadn't thought about me all this time, we probably wouldn't have gone out at all. Our love for each other would have died out like a flame that gets blown away by the wind at night. I'm very grateful to him for loving me all these years, but at the same time, I'm worried about the two of us. What will become of the future we hold? Will it stay like this with happy memories? Or, will it start to get worse over time? I just can't help but become anxious for the both of us. If things stay this way, what will happen to the life we have together?

While I'm currently inside Rapunzel's main office sorting out files, I looked up at the ceiling with many restless feelings forming in my mind. I could see a clear view of the sky filled with pure, white clouds that extending throughout the entire scene. The glass windows made it seem too beautiful for anyone to reach. My eyes lowered as I let out a very brief breath.

"It may seem near from here, but it's farther away from our grasps."

I stared at it for a while as my shoulders slumped a little. The sight I saw was indeed too magnificent to touch with their hands, much less feel around them. It was an endless horizon someone like myself could never be able to experience without the help of someone else.

Takuji might have sawn my expression when he walked up to me.

"Looks like you're at it again," he pointed out. He placed his right hand on his hip while his left one was near his side. "You always wore a worried and sad expression when you were thinking about something. Guess it must've been about Mira again. You've been like that since you two started dating. What's up?"

I turned towards Takuji's direction, facing him before lowering my head a bit. "It's just…" My eyes lowered as I expressed how I felt about the situation I was in. "I'm concerned about what's going to happen now that Mirai and I are in a relationship together. I just can't stop thinking that something's going to happen to split us apart, and that's what scares me the most. What do you think I should do, Takuji?"

As I stared at the floor, I could hear a sigh escape Takuji's lips.

With lowered eyes, he said, "Well, I don't know if you'll really end up breaking things off with him, but there's something I can at least say about this. Whether or not something will tear you two apart depends on the actions you and Mira take to get to that point. Once something happens, there's no turning back. You can only keep going forward until you reach your goal. Let me ask you this, Kirie: What do you think will be your largest obstacle in your relationship with him?"

When I saw his solemn expression, I could help but look into Takuji's eyes. I felt his stare piercing right into my soul and I knew he genuinely cared for my well-being, as well as Mirai's. Then, I answered him.

"My father." Before I knew it, my mouth became a thin line and I had a grim expression on my face as I gazed back into those periwinkle eyes that belonged to my friend and boss.

Takuji nodded. "That's right. He's one of the strictest men in the world, and his tone is harsher than anyone else's in the world. If he finds out about your whereabouts, he'll not only come to get you; he'll take you away from Mira at all costs. That's why, you must not let him get to you. If you do, it'll become much more difficult for Asuka and I to do anything about him. This world limits a magician's power, so we can't do anything that can counter your father's at the moment. Facing him would take more effort, but don't do anything reckless while we're not around to protect you. Understood?"

Kirie nodded back. "I understand. I won't try to do something useless unless I'm under any drastic circumstances."

"Good." Takuji stared deeply at me as he continued what he had to say. "If he gets to you before we can find your location, wait for us. We'll be on our way. You can trust Asuka and I on that."

The air around us felt so grave that I was also beginning to worry about how Takuji and Asuka would react if something were to happen to me before he could save me from the clenches of my father. I did not know what was going to happen later on, but a foreboding feeling was stirring in my entire body for hours.

**End of Kirie's Point of View**

Inside Cinderella's editorial department, Ayame was sitting in front of her computer, typing away just like she'd been doing for the past few weeks. There was still another page being added to Yuzuki's cover magazine, and each one was detailed with his personal life and work. It seemed as if it was going to be finished soon with a release date coming its way, but there were still some things that were missing from it.

Ayame frowned and was holding a mechanical pencil as she thought about what to put next on it. "Hmm. There's still a lot I need to write about Yuzuki, but what else is there to do?"

As she said this to herself, her friend Fuko, who was working at another part of the building, came up to her.

"Ayame?" she asked. "How are you doing on the Yuzuki Kitaoji biography?"

Ayame looked up after turning to face the bright orange-haired girl. "Oh, Fuko. Umm… I'm almost done with it, but there's still some stuff I need to add to it. What do you think I should add?"

Fuko smiled at the troubled look on Ayame's face. "Well, why don't you go over what you have, and see for yourself? Maybe an idea will come to mind and you'll be able to finish it in no time?" She gave an eye smile and tilted her head to her left. "Still, it's great that you were able to get such an incredible offer from THE Yuzuki Kitaoji himself. I'm sooooo jealous! Who knew you would score a cutie like him and end up becoming his editor? You've finally struck a gold mine, Ayame!"

"Ahaha…" Ayame laughed at Fuko's cheerfulness. "Thanks, but… I still have a long way to go before I can actually do anything that awesome. Besides, this is the first time I've ever written about a celebrity. I don't know how it'll go with my level of experience in our field."

Fuko frowned. "Come on, Ayame! That's not how an editor should be. You gotta be more positive about this and believe in yourself more. Otherwise, how are you going to convince Yuzuki's manager that you can pull this off?" Then, she returned to having a smile etched onto her face. "You're my best friend. It shouldn't matter what you do with this story. If you decide to do something, I know you'll get to the finish line by the end of the month. You're also in a relationship with Yuzuki, right? Go and take his hand, and run with him to stardom, girl. I've got your back even if someone throws a boo or two at you. Don't let anyone else get in the way of your love life and just take off like a rocket!" A laugh came out of her mouth as she closed her eyes once more. "Ahahahahaha! Am I an amazing friend, or what?"

Ayame laughed at the sight of her upbeat roommate and companion. "Ahahaha! That, you are, Fuko." She grabbed her stomach, which was starting to hurt from the burst of laugher that filled the room. "Ah! You're the best person to come to for this kind of thing." She opened her eyes and smile back at Fuko. "Thanks for everything, Fuko. I could never get up if it weren't for you."

With her right hand, Fuko curled her fingers into a thumbs-up sign and grinned. "Hey, there's no one who can put that smile on your face like I can. Yuzuki might be able to top me, but he's more than a friend to you. He's your hubby, after all!"

The enthusiasm that spread throughout the entire office also brought several smiles from the other employees around the two of them, impacting the atmosphere at Cinderella. Everyone, including Atsushi, were having a pleasant time as they kept working on the articles that packed their schedules, making it a more productive day for the company. A meeting soon began and the workers brought up the topics for their magazines.

"Right now," Ayame announced, "I am working on a project for Yuzuki Kitaoji on his daily life, which includes what he does during his free time and how he carries out his job. A bit of his background and birth has been added on the first few pages, and a list of his close friends and acquaintances are also in it. The purpose of this magazine is to help promote his agency, as well as Mr. Kitaoji himself into gathering more people to have an interest in him and who he is, not just the image he puts forth whenever he's surrounded by the media and paparazzi. Rather than being known for your outer appearance, I think it would be better to allow others to get to know you for your true self. That is why, I have decided to capture the person Yuzuki Kitaoji is on the inside, instead of the outside." A loving smile appeared on Ayame's face as she concluded her pronouncement. "Yuzuki is more than what the public thinks of him. He is an outstanding young man who is worth more than what has been taken granted of him. I will continue to support him during this entire time, and after I am finished with this magazine. If anyone else were to spend more time with him, they would discover Yuzuki's best qualities and understand what makes him Yuzuki Kitaoji." She bowed and smiled amiably at the co-workers who were gathered around the large table.

A round of applause filled the room; Atsushi saw the dedication within Ayame's brown eyes and smiled at his employee. Fuko smiled as well, and saw her best friend in a new light that shined down. Tears formed in her eyes as she and everyone else in the meeting room clapped approvingly for the brunette. Ayame's speech had not only filled their hearts with respect; it had also given each and every one of them the inspiration to keep doing their jobs with efficiency.

It was seven o'clock that evening and many reported surrounded Yuzuki as he was standing in front of his agency. Ayame was on the side, taking pictures of him for the Cinderella edition of his coverage. There were also questions that were spoken aloud as the commotion spread around the famous actor. An interview took place at that time.

"Mr. Kitaoji," a male reporter began, "if I may ask, you are one of the main characters of the new drama airing on Thursday nights at nine, correct?"

Yuzuki smiled affably and gave a reply to the reporter's enquiry. "Yes. I will be portraying the lead with a co-worker of mine. It will spur the hearts of our viewers, or so the director has said. At the very least, I am hoping to do an excellent job on my part."

"The person you're starring with is Yurika Nakasono, who is playing as your romantic interest in the series, right?" another reporter asked. "What is your relationship with her?"

A third reporter nodded. "Are you dating her? There have also been reports of you being involved with that editor from Cinderella standing in the crowd over there. Who is to say that you aren't actually cheating on Ms. Nakasono while you are with the other beauty?"

Yuzuki let out a chuckle at the accusations. "Ahaha. I think you have mistaken Ms. Nakasono and I to be a couple of sorts. To answer your questions, no. I am not dating Yurika Nakasono at all. We have never been more than close friends in the entertainment industry, and will remain as such for the rest of our careers decreed us to. I am actually in love with someone else, and I hold that person to be the most important woman in my life. She has a much more special place in my heart than my mother, but that doesn't mean that I have come to hate my mom. I love both of them dearly, but for the first time in my life, this young lady has made my heart skip a beat every time I'm around her. Within a short amount of time, I have fallen for her. She is always in my thoughts, even when I am working, and I am currently seeing her at this very moment."

"Mr Kitaoji," the first reporter pressed on, "who is this woman that fills your entire being? Please answer this. We must know who you are in love with before we can say anything else. Could she be another celebrity like yourself, or is she an ordinary woman? We are all dying to know who it is."

Before Yuzuki could respond to the reporter's question, a young woman around his age walked towards him and faced the reporters and journalists. She had the appearance of a haughty actress and resembled a fox.

"That would be me," she said. "Yuzuki is _actually_ in love with me, but he denies it whenever my name is mentioned."

The paparazzi gave rapid glances and mutters as they looked at the person standing next to Yuzuki. Then, one of them looked up and confronted the young woman.

"Ms. Nakasono," he called out. "Are you and Mr. Kitaoji officially going out with each other?"

Without a change in her expression, Yurika looked at the reporter. "That's right. Yuzuki and I are seeing each other. We fell in love after working together in a few dramas after our debuts. Our agency has permitted us to date and if our love for each other continues, we will get married after a year or so."

Yuzuki furrowed his eyebrows as he glanced at the actress. Instead of making a retort, and turned towards where Ayame was and walked up to her. With his left hand, he quickly pulled her out from the crowd and the two made their way far from everyone who were surrounding them.

"…!" Yurika's eyes widened when she saw them leave. "Yuzuki! Where are you going?!"

Yuzuki did not look back, but Ayame did.

"Yuzuki," she frowned. "Is it really okay to just leave with me? Everyone's looking at us."

Suddenly, a grin appeared on the actor's face as he ran away with the editor. "Why are you talking about? Of course it is! I'm having the time of my life right now. Don't you feel the excitement in the air?"

"Well, yeah, but…" Ayame trailed off. She was still a bit anxious about escaping with Yuzuki. "I'm not sure if we should be doing this. It'll attract too much attention from the journalists and reporters back there."

Yuzuki frowned as they kept going. "To be honest with you, I couldn't take Yurika's attitude back there. She's someone who twists another person's words to make them seem as though it's the truth when there're just lies."

"Yuzuki…" Ayame caught a glimpse of the celebrity's expression and gazed at his face as they kept running for what seemed like a very brief time, which it was.

Soon, they came to a stopping point and Yuzuki turned around, looking into Ayame's eyes with a serious expression.

"I love you, Ayame," he professed his love. "I could never love anyone else but you. No one—not even Yurika could ever replace you in my heart." He placed his right hand on the side of Ayame's face and held up as though it was the most fragile thing in the world. Then, he embraced her. "It can't be anyone else but you. You're all I ever think about whenever I'm not with you. Please… Don't think about someone other than me. I said it before, but you're the most important person to me. You're the only one who's been making my heart pound faster than I would have thought it would, so stay by my side. I need you."

While she was in Yuzuki's arms, Ayame's eyes widened. "Yuzuki, I… I love you, too." Tears formed in her eyes and flowed down her cheeks. "I don't ever want to be apart from you…! You're the only person I have left besides Fuko, and I don't want to be alone. I want to be with you forever… That's all I really want. There's nothing else I really need, but to be by your side."

They both pulled away from each other for a few seconds before leaning in for a kiss that enveloped their whole bodies. With each time their lips met, their feelings for each other became even more passionate than they would have predicted in all their lives. Yet, they could not find themselves pulling apart anytime soon. So, the two of them stayed almost glued together in long make out session.

An hour after Yuzuki and Ayame retreated from the lot of paparazzi, Mirai and Kirie were inside a bar that was owned by Satsuki. They were both talking to each other and were sitting near the counter.

"It's been a while since I was last here with everyone," Mirai smiled. "We all came here together, and Yuzu would end up getting drunk most of the time. It was really fun to see. Sometimes we would have to watch over him while he slept on the couch in the VIP room here."

An inquisitive expression spread onto Kirie's face as she looked at Mirai. "Really? I never would have thought that Yuzuki would sleep like a rock after drinking. He gives off the impression of someone who tends to hop from place to place in little to no time at all since he's always working on his acting career."

"Well, when you're in the entertainment industry, you have to stick to your schedule all the time," Mirai explained. "It gets tiring every day since you have to stay in shape and move around more often. Idols also have it tough since they have to memorize the choreography for each dance when they perform on stage and sing. They can also pursue Yuzu's forte if they want to, but then, they would have to go through all the acting lessons like he's already taken before appearing in a drama or movie. It's a really interesting but time–consuming occupation at times. You'll get more experience as time goes by if you work real hard to get to the top, but every career is like that in some way."

Kirie swiftly found herself smiling at the college student and placed her left hand on the side of her face. "Hnn… You make a good point, Mirai. _But_. You really are a good kid, you know?" She closed her eyes and kept smiling. "I just can't help but like that about you."

Mirai's eyes widened as a blush came to his face. "Wh—" Then, he frowned embarrassingly, which proved Kirie's comment about him being a child. "Uun… I'm not a little kid; I'm nineteen for crying out loud! Quit treating me like one, Kirie. I'm almost an adult."

Kirie let out a laugh. "Ahaha!" She pointed at Mirai with her right index finger. "See? You really _are_ one, Mirai! It's no wonder people tease you about it all the time! I bet Yuzuki and Ryoichi tell you that, too!"

Shortly afterward, Mirai fell silent and stared at Kirie's joyful expression with admiration. Up until that moment, he had noticed something that he didn't realize beforehand.

_This is the first time that I've ever seen Kirie laugh so wholeheartedly, _he thought. _She looks so happy that I just want to see her smile like that no matter what. Seeing her expression really brightens up me day._

He smiled gentle at the sight of the dark magenta-haired girl. Then, he had the urge to ask her something.

"Hey, Kirie," he brought up. "There's something I want to ask you. It's a really important matter for me."

As Kirie kept smiling at Mirai, she tilted her head to her right. "Hm? What is it?"

Mirai gazed deeply into Kirie's eyes and said, "I want to meet your parents. Do you think it would be okay for me to?"

Hearing those words come out of her boyfriend's mouth, Kirie's eyes widened with a surprise. "You want to meet… my parents?"

Mirai nodded. "Yeah. If it's possible, I'd like to introduce myself to them. We're dating, so—"

"No! You can't," Kirie objected fiercely. All of a sudden, she had an angry look on her face, which backed up her statement. "I can't let you meet my father no matter what, Mirai, so a no is a no."

Mirai was confused and shocked by the editor's change of heart. "Huh? Why not?"

"It's for your own sake," Kirie quickly replied. "You wouldn't understand the situation I'm in, Mirai. Right now, I'm trying to prevent you from ever seeing him because it'd be better if you didn't. I have an obligation to protect you from involving yourself in this. After all, you're still someone who—"

Mirai frowned with a similar expression. "Wait a minute. I think you're the one who doesn't understand, Kirie! You don't know anything about me, so don't think you can just keep me out of your life just because you don't want me to meet your father!" He stood up and continued to argue with Kirie. "I may be an underaged little brat who can't seem to have to have the capabilities to defend myself in your eyes, but that isn't true at all. But if you want to tell me that I don't stand a chance against anyone, then you're wrong. I can protect myself without any trouble, but you're doubting who I really am on the inside. If you don't believe me, fine. I can handle everything without you worrying about me." Mirai turned away and walked out the door, leaving Kirie by herself to look after him.

Once he was out of her sight, she shifted towards the direction of the counter and looked at its surface. Then, she started to cry, covering her mouth with her right hand. All of her painful feelings poured out and she sat there with her an aching heart as she continued to feel hurt from the dispute she had with Mirai seconds ago.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**Private Matters to Attend to**

"You don't even know a thing about me, Kirie!" Mirai shouted after he stood up from his seat. His eyes lowered, and he was still upset about Kirie's opposition to let him meet her father. "Don't you think you should at least try to understand _my_ side for once?!" His tone of voice calmed down right after that and tears formed in his eyes. "Just because you don't want me to meet your father, doesn't mean that you should run away from the problems you have with him, Kirie. I know I wouldn't. I mean, yeah, I don't get to see my dad very often, but that doesn't mean that I don't at least try to get in contact with him or sort out my own feelings with him. He's my only family, after all." He blinked twice, and his tears began to flow down his face. "You may think that I'm just a little kid who can't protect himself from others around him, but that's not actually it. Kirie, right now, you're not even letting me help you." His gaze shifted towards the floor as he continued. "Maybe it's because you don't believe that I can defend myself and those important to me from harm's way. However." He looked up and focused his gaze directly at the girl in front of him. "I can tell you that you're wrong because... deep within your heart, you're doubting who I really am, along with my abilities to carry out and keep my promise to you. If you don't trust my words, then it's fine. I can prove to you how much I really mean what I said to you."

Just before Mirai was about to move away from his seat, Kirie grabbed hold of his right arm with her [right] hand, having an apologetic and regretful expression on her face, showing how sad she felt about their argument.

"Wait, Mirai," the dark magenta-haired girl pleaded. "I—"

Mirai looked at Kirie one more time before saying his parting words as he gently reached for the hand that was on his arm with his left. "You don't have to worry about me anymore, Kirie. I can take care of myself. So, just… think about yourself, and don't go after me." He slowly pulled his right arm away from Kirie's grasp and turned away from her as he made his way towards the front door.

After he left and was no longer in her sight, Kirie stared at the door for a few seconds. Then, tears quickly formed from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. She shifted to face the surface of the counter in the bar and placed her right hand over her mouth to drown out the sobs that expressed the pain and sorrow she felt from the dispute she had started with Mirai.

Several moments passed before she stopped articulating her cries. There were still tears in her eyes as she continued to look down. Just as she blinked away the remaining drops of tears in them, the door to the VIP room opened, and a familiar voice was heard.

"Oh? Who do we have here? A damsel in distress?" Ryoichi Hirose smiled as he typically did and walked up to Kirie.

Noel was also with him but did not say a thing. "…"

When she heard Ryoichi's voice, Kirie lifted her head and turned towards her left.

"Ryoichi?" she said. "What are you doing here with Noel?"

With folded arms, the writer answered. "I was working on my next novel while I was relaxing with our wonderful F1 racer until now. I just finished my rough draft of it, though. Might I ask, what brings your lovely presence to a place like this, Kirie Kuroki-san? It's unusual to see you here, rather than when you're working as an editor for your young CEO over at Rapunzel. What was his name again?" A smirked ran across his face in an instant. "Oh, yes. It was Takuji Uramoto, was it not? A very interesting magician with a young wife of the same age as him, isn't he? He sure knows how to entertain the people around him without a moment's notice, just like he did before the wedding weeks before. He's the type of person who can lift up one's spirit in no time, so I was thinking about meeting him later to see what his thoughts are if I were to write a book about him. In a way, he perks my curiosity."

Kirie frowned. "That sounds as though you're trying to harass him, instead of actually planning on negotiating with him fairly."

Her eyes narrowed at the sadistic proposal.

_And indirectly, too, _she thought. _I wonder if I should really let him go for actually doing that with the way he speaks. He's such a player on the outside, but he doesn't show his inner emotions get the better of him at a time like this._

She stopped her inklings for a second before continuing with fully opened eyes.

_It's not such a bad thing when I think about it, but..._

She frowned with a look of worry showing on her face.

_Maybe it'd be better if he wasn't like that, _she finished.

There was that inquisitive smile on Ryoichi's face once more as he studied Kirie's expressions and emotions.

"It seems that you're worried and vexed about something," he noted. "But you also looked depressed earlier when Noel and I came out. Did something happen while we weren't here to see you?"

After seeing Ryocihi's face for a moment, Kirie's eyes lowered simultaneously with her shoulders slumping motion. On the contrary, Noel had been staring at Kirie for a while. His eyes widened with realization shortly afterward. Other than that, he had an indifferent look on his face as he stood in place.

"You…" he trailed off as he continued to look at Kirie.

Kirie blinked and glanced at the half-Japanese man standing a few feet away from Ryoichi.

"Huh?" she uttered. "Did you say something just now?"

A thin line took over the place of Noel's mouth as he gazed at the dark magenta-haired girl. "You fought with Mirai, didn't you?" he asked nonchalantly. "That's why your face was drained from crying so much. The whole area was soundproofed, so we couldn't have heard what was going out in here since we were separated by the VIP room and bar. Mirai brought you here and left some time after that."

Kirie nodded as she stared at the floor. "Yeah. He asked if he could meet my father, but I didn't let him. Truthfully, I was afraid something was going to happen to him if that were to happen. I wanted to protect him from ever encountering my father, but then…"

"Mirai took it the wrong way and started to argue with you," Noel finished the sentence for Kirie. This earned a nod from her as the F1 racer understood the rest of the story. "It's not your fault. Mirai didn't know your true feelings about it. That's why he stormed out on you and left you here alone."

Kirie shook her head. "No, I'm equally at fault here. If I hadn't shouted at Mirai, none of this would have happened in the first place. In fact, I was the one who started it, not Mirai."

Noel frowned. "No, that's not it. Mirai was being immature on his part because he was taking things too fast in your relationship. It was only a few weeks since you two dated, but he's rushing things farther than most people would."

"Now that I think about it," Kirie mentioned, "Mirai's the one who takes the initiative in our when we're together. But…" Kirie's eyes lowered as she thought back to the fateful day she met the college student. "I was the one who asked to make a promise with him so that we could meet again if we ended up crossing paths a second time. I'm certain Mirai took it to heart and longed for the day when we would. Everything started due to my actions, so the person who needs to be blamed the most for stringing him along is me. I don't even deserve to be with Mirai, but…"

Ryoichi smirked, but it was a bit more lenient this time. "But you love him with all your heart, right? Mirai holds you dear to him more than anyone in the world we live in, so you shouldn't think that you're the one who's been deceiving him all this time. Yes, Mirai has his own flaws, those of which he should be reflecting on afterwards, but that's just how he is. You know that, don't you?" Without waiting for an answer, the novelist continued his rant. "However, there _is_ one thing that makes him the adolescent young boy he is, and that's the desire to protect the woman he loves. You know that more than anything, I presume. After all, you're the type of girlfriend who might actually do more of the pampering when it comes down to it." Ryoichi laughed at the suggestion. "Perhaps it's not bad if Mirai was the one being taken care of, instead of the other way around."

Kirie sighed and smiled. "You're such a jokester, aren't you, Ryoichi? I don't particularly like to pamper anyone, though."

"But Mirai might be an exception, right?" Ryoichi asked rhetorically. "He's the type of guy who captivates a lady's heart easily because of his looks. He's also young externally, but old internally. What's more is that he doesn't want to let go of the things and people he cherishes. Although it may seem cheesy, it's how he truly feels. Don't you think so, Kirie?"

Kirie stared at the author with an acknowledging expression. Then, she nodded. "Un. That's matches him perfectly. It comes to a person's mind in an instant, doesn't it…?"

"Of course it does," Ryoichi answered. "That's the kind of image he gives off wherever he goes. It's Mirai we're talking about. I bet if you were to say that to him, he would become flustered enough to look like a drunk young adult, or perhaps even a tomato. At any rate," he added, "It might be best if you were to visit him at this time."

Kirie tilted her head to her right. "Right now? Isn't it getting kind of late, though?"

"Well…" Ryoichi contemplated. He put his right index finger near the tip of his chin. "There might be just one place he would probably be, despite how late it's gotten. We might as well tell you since the three of us are gathered here." She turned his head to his right side. "Isn't that correct, Noel?"

The bright blond nodded. "I'll write down the address." He took out a piece of paper from his left pocket located on his pants, along with a pen from his right one. Then, he walked over towards a brown leather armchair and sat down on it, placing the piece of paper on the glass table as he wrote down the primary building Mirai could have been at that very moment. Shortly afterwards, he stood up from his seat and put away the pen. Next, he walked over to Kirie and held out the white sheet. "Here. You should be able to find him at this location. But, you need to wait a bit. I'll make sure he's there and if he is, I'll speak with him."

Kirie's eyes widened as she looked at Noel's face. "You mean… You're going to find Mirai right now?! But… Are you really sure about this? What if he doesn't turn out where you said he would be? It'd be a waste of your efforts if he isn't there."

A smile manifested on Noel's face as he reassured the dark magenta-haired girl. "Don't worry. Mirai will be there. I'm positive of it. If everyone else but Mirai was here, they would more than likely tell you the same thing."

"You can at least count on _that_, can't you?" Ryoichi inquired. "We've all known Mirai for quite a long time now, so there's no way Noel and I would ever lie about this. If one of us says he'll be at a certain place, then it's ninety-nine point nine percent true. And if it isn't, we can think of another place he'd be." His expression softened as he continued to converse with Kirie. "Mirai's still young, and the fact that he's still growing can be a little problematic for others since he acts like the kid he is. Having someone talk to him about his rights and wrongs might help him become more mature, even if it's only a tiny amount. Just wait and see for yourself; once Noel finds him, he'll call and I will inform you about it. Then, I'll escort you there. If Mirai were to know that you would walk there by yourself at night, he would throw another fuss about it. I'd truly savior the expression he'll create if he found out, but it won't hurt much to take you to him safely after hearing from Noel. How about it? Would you like to prevent Mirai from worrying about you, Kirie Kuroki-san?"

Another sigh escaped Kirie's mouth as she stared at Ryoichi in an irritated manner. "Again with the –san, huh? You even called me by my name without any formalities earlier, didn't you? Hearing from you kind of makes me tired, Hirose-_sensei_. It turns the blood and arteries within my left wrist inside out, along with my muscles there. Wouldn't you think so?"

"A bit of a disturbing way to put it," Ryoichi smirked. "Why don't I hire you as my editor from now on? You might love the fame and fortune I have with my novels, Kuroki-san. I could also—"

The writer was immediately cut off with a raised hand from Kirie.

"No thanks," she replied. "I'd rather look for Mirai, but I'll leave things to you two for that part." She glanced at Noel and smiled faintly, taking the piece of paper from him. "When you find Mirai, can you stay with him until Ryoichi and I get there? I… want to be able to face him without any mixed feelings this time." She looked down a bit with quarter-closed eyes. "I know that I haven't been able to give him an actual answer to his feelings yet, and I've caused you all some trouble since the night of the wedding. But this time, I really want to let him know that I'm not going to run away anymore." She looked up and her expression didn't budge, indicating her new resolve for the future between her and Mirai.

As he saw Kirie's determination, Noel smiled back. "You can leave things to us." He placed his left hand on Kirie's right shoulder before walking out.

Kirie turned her head towards the direction the bright blond left and gave a slight nod. "Un. It'll be okay. Once we meet each other, I'll make sure to mend our relationship with Mirai. It wouldn't work with only one of us, after all."

"Hmm~," the author mused as he gazed at Kirie's light expression with folded arms. Then, he looked at his right side. "Perhaps it will turn out to be so. Once the skies clear up from all of this, we might not have to worry about anything and continue with our lives as they are."

As they waited, Noel was making his way towards the place Mirai was currently staying. It was a matter of time before they would meet.

Meanwhile, the college student was crouching outside a building named Sea Breeze Garden. It was a foster home he had always gone to when he was younger. Back then, he was alone until a few kids around the same age brought him there to play when his father was busy with work. Even after studying abroad in Switzerland, he would come to visit often, as it filled his entire being with a sense of nostalgia. He was very fond of it since it was also like a second home to him, rather than the house he lived in with his parents years ago.

He donned a sad expression on his face as he stared at the ground. As he thought back to the argument he had with Kirie a while ago, he let out a sigh. "Maybe I said too much," he said to no one in particular. "Kirie… I wonder if she's been suffering all this time. If so, then it's all my fault for saying such horrible things to her."

Within seconds, tears began to form in his eyes. Right after that, they dripped down and Mirai lowered his head in guilt. He held his knees close to his body as he wiped away his tears with the back of his right hand.

"I'm sorry…" He apologized. "I'm really sorry…"

A voice rang out as footsteps walked up behind him.

"Mirai?" the voice asked. "What's wrong?"

Mirai looked up and turned around. "Director…"

The director's eyes widened, and a concerned expression took over his previous one. "Were you thinking about something? Your face is full of tears. Did something happen between you and your girlfriend?"

Mirai nodded and looked down. "Yeah. I got myself into a fight with her and left her alone while we were on a date. I said some really harsh things to her and it hurts my heart to think that she might still be there crying by herself. I don't even know if I can even face her."

The director's expression softened and a smile replaced the worried look on his face as he placed his left hand on his hip. "Then, wouldn't it better if you apologized to her in person? I know you're not the type of person to intentionally inflict pain on those you care about, Mirai. I've always known you as a sweet young boy who would never hesitate to help those in trouble. You're much more kindhearted than some of the people in the city, and it shows all around you, especially on your face. You're like a living radiator because of your bright personality, which warms up the hearts of those within your presence. If you truly love your girlfriend, Mirai, I'm sure you'll come to see her before it's too late to make up with her. Isn't that how all relationships work out in the end?" His eyes lowered as he gazed into Mirai's eyes, which made the college student realize what he meant. "Answer me, Mirai; do you truly love her, or not? What happens from now on depends on your emotions and the actions you take with them. Those two combined will determine the ending you'll have with your lover. Love works with more than one person, so it is also up to her to decide what to do. Whatever takes place in the near yet far future you have with her is something I cannot do for you. It's a choice that foreshadows the events afterward."

"Director…" Mirai stared into the kind eyes that guided him. "I…"

"Mirai."

A voice had called the youth's name and Mirai turned to see who it was.

His eyes widened once more at the sight of one of his friends. "Noel?!" he shouted in shock. "What are you doing here?!"

"To talk to you, of course," the F1 racer responded with his usual nonchalant tone of voice. "It's important for you to hear me out right now."

Mirai tilted his head to the side. "Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"You'll have to find out," Noel replied. His eyes lowered in what seemed like disappointment. "Mirai, you…"

The director smiled. "Well, I better check up on the children. I'll take to you after this, Mirai." As he began to walk away, Mirai turned his head around.

"Wait!" he exclaimed. "Director!"

The director had already stepped into the orphanage and Mirai sighed, facing Noel again.

He frowned and looked up. "What is it?"

"You fought with Kirie Kuroki, didn't you?" Noel questioned. "That's why you're here."

Mirai suddenly had a surprised look on his face, and he stood up from his bending position. "How do you…?"

"I happened to see her after walking out of the bar's VIP room with Ryoichi," the blunt man told his younger friend as he sighed. "She was already finished with crying by the time we spoke with her. But she seemed to be in a better mood than before," he smiled. "She wants to talk with you, too."

"Kirie's okay…?" Mirai trailed off. A troubled look quickly replaced the expression he had before. He looked down after that. "But… I… I took it out on her, yet she's willing to forgive me? Is that really all there is to it?"

A solemn frown formed on Noel's face. "Mirai. Isn't it obvious that she wants to make up with you, despite what happened beforehand? Don't you trust your girlfriend's feelings at all?"

Mirai looked up. "Trust… Kirie's feelings…?"

Noel nodded. "In order to compromise and admit your mistakes, you must also trust the person you love. Is that not what being in a relationship is about?" He took out his cell phone and pressed a button on the top side of it, and a red light began to flash on and off. "You know, don't you? She isn't someone who would hold a grudge against you, because she loves you." Another smile appeared on his face.

Seeing Noel's smile, Mirai understood the blond's words, nodding to himself. Before he could say anything to express his gratitude, rapid footsteps rushed to the entrance of the foster home, and soon came to a stop. In front of them were Kirie and Ryoichi. Kirie was panting heavily and looked at Mirai, having regained her breathing as she stood up straight along with the renowned writer, who was folding his arms across his chest after helping the dark magenta-haired girl up.

Kirie stepped forward and placed her right hand over her heart. "Mirai…" She smiled at the sight of her boyfriend and her expression softened as she looked at him.

"Well," Ryoichi breathed, "it's about time we take our leave. Right, Noel?"

Noel nodded and walked over to Ryoichi. Then, the two of them took left the couple alone as they made their way back to their homes. Now a few feet apart from each other, Kirie and Mirai stared into their designated partner's eyes.

"Kirie, I—" Mirai began, but was soon cut off with a shake from Kirie's head.

The editor from Rapunzel kept smiling and walked up to Mirai with both her hands by her sides. "Mirai, I was wrong to have refused to let you meet my father. I was actually scared of the outcome if you were to encounter him, so I tried to stop you from doing anything." She frowned and apologized for her behavior. "I'm sorry for everything I did to hurt your feelings. If I hadn't tried to prevent you from meeting him, none of this would have happened."

With a similar expression etched onto his face, Mirai embraced Kirie with a tender movement of his arms. "No, it was because I was too selfish to even consider your feelings. I just wanted to get his approval for our relationship, so you wouldn't have to worry about being with me, Kirie. I'm sorry for getting so worked up and pushing my feelings on to you." He slowly pulled apart from his lover. "Will you… forgive me?"

Kirie nodded and closed her eyes, which conveyed the answer to Mirai's question. While they weren't completely separated from one another, the college student knew what his girlfriend meant. He leaned downward and soon, his lips rested on the dark magenta-haired girl's. The moon glowed brightly above them as they were locked in a long and loving kiss that lasted for hours before they pulled apart from each other.

It was two-thirty in the morning when Mirai and Kirie reached the apartment the editor was staying at after they had made up at the foster home. Kirie was sound asleep on Mirai's back, and the youth pressed the doorbell, which rang shortly afterward. The door opened immediately, revealing a smiling Takuji and Asuka.

"Looks like you finally made it here," the mint-haired young man greeted the college student. "Come on in. I'm sure you're tired from walking home with my daughter on your back, Mira. You can drop her off upstairs on her bedroom before you leave."

Mirai looked up at Takuji and saw the married man's sincerity, but then, he glanced down at the ground in front of them. "Um… Well…"

"Do you want us to take Kirie-chan off your hands, Mirai-kun?" Asuka asked. "I can do that and carry her to her bed, if you wish."

Mirai nodded. "Yeah, sorry for bringing her home this late and early in the morning, too. I'm sure I've caused you two to stay up because I didn't take Kirie home before midnight."

He turned around and Asuka gently grabbed hold of Kirie's body, carrying her as if she were a bride. The white-haired magician walked up the stairs and laid the dark magenta-haired girl down on the bed near the window. She stayed with Kirie while Takuji and Mirai were downstairs. As Mirai turned around to face Takuji, the CEO of Rapunzel smiled in a welcoming and friendly manner.

"Hey, Mirai," Takuji called the nineteen-year-old's name, "why don't we step outside for a bit? There's something I need to talk to you about."

Mirai tilted his head to his right. "?"

He didn't know what it was about, but he could feel that it was something regarding Kirie and nodded as Takuji walked out the door and closed it behind them.

"It's a good thing you came," Takuji brought up as he and Mirai walked to the nearby park together. "I've been meaning to say this to you for a while now."

Mirai followed behind the mint-haired magician and kept a distance from him. "Um… What was it that you wanted to tell me…? If it's about Kirie and I dating—"

Takuji shook his head. "No. That's not it." His voice sounded much more serious when he spoke those words. Although Mirai could not see Takuji's expression, there was a grave look on the young man's face. Takuji stopped in his tracks and waited for a couple seconds before he turned around. The bright light from the moon was shining on his entire body, giving his physical appearance a much more beautiful look than the sun did. Mirai's eyes widened once he saw the look on Takuji's face. "What I'm about to tell you is something that you and Kirie need to prepare for."

"Huh…?" Mirai blurted out gradually. "What… Kirie and I need to prepare for…?"

"Correct," the magician confirmed. "You of all people have to take precaution on this matter. This is about Kirie's father, Mirai."

A stunned expression appeared on Mirai's face as he heard the last few words that came out of Takuji's mouth. "Kirie's… father?" he inquired like before. "But what exactly do you mean by taking precaution…? Is Kirie's father far more dangerous than anyone from the underworld, Takuji?"

Takuji nodded. "Yeah. In fact, he's the _king_ of the underworld that you're part of, Mirai."

"The king?" Mirai questioned. He placed his right hand [which was closed] in front of his lips as he contemplated about the fact. "But then that means that he overpowers everyone else working there. Since he's also been there for several years, there's no chance of actually defeating him. But wait." He looked up and gazed into Takuji's eyes. "Takuji. Could he have built of his status in the underworld in order to get hold of Kirie all this time? If that's true, then he's still searching for her right now, and when he finally finds her, he'll…"

"Take her away and keep her locked up in an eternal hell," Takuji answered. "He has been planning to take her away since she was fifteen, right before she enrolled in Zouma Academy, which has now been combined with Sousei Academy to form Souseizouma Academy. There were several times when he's found her and tortured her in a chamber for disobeying his orders and running away from home. And Kirie used to have scars that ran over the upper part of her body that ranged from small to long ones. There were also some on the side of her legs. Kirie's father has even used knives and leather belts to beat and cut her after she graduated from high school as the punishment he believed she deserved for her rebellious personality. When Asuka and I met her, her scars and wounds instantly recovered and were no longer visible. Rather than letting her live all alone, we took her in our care and moved to where we are today."

Suddenly, Mirai heard something which he was certain was a voice from the past.

_"Help me…" _the voice cried. Mirai could see an image of Kirie holding her knees close to her chest. Her hair was shorter just like when they first met each other, which meant that it was somewhere after she had moved in with the couple. _"Help me… Mirai…" _Tears from Kirie's eyes fell down as she started to break down from the pain she had endured not too long ago. And she started to weep as she sat on the wooden floor across from her bed. _"I want to see you again, Mirai… Please, don't leave me alone… I'm scared… I don't want to go back… So please… Hurry up and find me…"_

Kirie's past voice and image disappeared from Mirai's mind as he stared in place.

"Kirie…" he trailed off with a sad expression on his face. His eyes lowered as he looked down a bit. "I'm sorry…"

Takuji took note of Mirai's expression and asked, "Did you see it?"

Mirai nodded and kept facing the direction of the ground. "Yeah… Kirie was crying by herself and the sight of her in pain started to hit my heart when she called for help. But… What should I even do to save her, Takuji? I don't even know how to help her, or what I can do to defeat her father."

"Well," Takuji sighed. His expression remained unchanged as he continued his side of the conversation. He glanced up from his right and stared at the night sky filled with stars. "What I can really say at this moment is that you might want to go undercover and find out more information on her father. He looked back at Mirai with an unwavering gaze. "His name… is Tomio Kuroki. He is also a well-known business man whose wealth exceeds that of Satsuki's in the financial world, which makes him the king in both business and the underworld. Due to his immense fame and fortune, he has enough power to push those behind him farther away so they can't reach the amount of money he holds. However, if you were to stop him and overturn his status in the underworld, you would be able to steal his assets away and free Kirie from this mess he has created for the people of Roppongi. Right now, my powers, along with Asuka's have been repressed because of the law the world we came from has placed on us. We will have to go back and ask for permission to use our full powers against Kirie's father, but it may take several hours before we can aid you and Kirie in this battle. Though it may be difficult without our help, we need you to make a deal with him."

Mirai looked up with a serious expression. "I understand. But first, I'll have to gather some materials. Do you think you can help me with gathering them, Takuji?"

At that second, a smirked spread across Takuji's face. "Mira, who do you think I am?" He placed his right hand on his hip and took out a sack with a rope around it out of nowhere using his left hand. Then, he tossed it in Mirai's direction; the latter caught it with both his arms extended and looked at the bag. "I've already got that part covered, so you don't need to worry about the items you need. There's even an outfit and wig included, which I had to buy over here, but the rest are from my world. See for yourself what's inside of it and make sure to use them wisely."

As instructed, Mirai loosened the rope and opened the sack he was holding. He pulled something out and was amazed by the item in his right hand.

"Wha—" His mouth dropped and his eyes widened at the sight of what he was holding. "Is this a whip?!" The whip he held had a shining cyan and turquoise color to it; the handle, on the other hand, was golden and magnificent to behold. "It's so beautiful, Takuji! How'd you get this?"

Takuji grinned. "I requested it to be custom made. There's a blacksmith in the city Asuka and I live in. Her work is topnotch in the magician world and she's a married beauty everyone knows. She also has a daughter who runs a shrine there, but don't mind that right now. We have a mission to carry out and we'll need to finish it by tomorrow night."

"But why tomorrow night?" Mirai asked curiously. "Can't we finish it within a few days or something?"

"First thing's first: We need to get you and Kirie well rested so you can fight her father and defeat him quickly," Takuji explained, brushing off Mirai's enquiry. "This will take a while, so perhaps by noon, you'll both be fully recharged. In addition, you're going to be asking around for Tomio and when his henchmen agree to let you meet him, you'll have to negotiate with him to lure him into a trap to make a transaction for whatever you want. For example, the Sea Breeze Garden. I heard from Satsuki that you've made large donations there, so you can find a way to do that and fetch the money right after he decides to establish a contract with you tonight. Then tomorrow night around seven, you'll knock out his men and get closer to him after you're done with the disguise; Asuka and I will be back in our world for a while, but I'm sure you'll be able to handle most of it without us. After that's been settled, you'll fight him face-to-face and beat the hell out of him. Got it?"

Mirai nodded in an insecure manner after sighing. He had no idea if Takuji's plan was going to work or not, but it couldn't work to try, right?

_I guess it might be a success if I can pull this off without any problem, _he thought. _But Takuji seems to believe that there's a chance this will work, so I'll just put my faith in him and see how it goes._

In an upbeat fashion, Takuji made a motion to his left, lifted his right arm up, threw it in a way that made it seem like he was pointing a gun, and winked with his right eye at Mirai. "Saa! Go and get 'em, Mira!"

Mirai sweat-dropped at seeing Takuji's eccentric personality play out, but it was normal—at least, that was what he knew for a few years or so. He couldn't exactly complain about it, but the mint-haired magician's actions were truly… _unexpected_. Nonetheless, he could only hope that Takuji's plan would be able to bring victory to their side. Indeed. Hope was something that they would need to ensure Tomio Kuroki's defeat, but they need more than that. What they really needed was the power to fuel the task at hand in order to help create a better world for the human population.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**Infiltration at the Warehouse; When Love Comes to the Rescue**

It was one o'clock in the afternoon that day after Mirai had taken Kirie home early in the morning. He was in disguise with a black wig, glasses, and a blue business suit and had the appearance of a young entrepreneur who was earnest and sincere, unlike his usual self. His smile was quite splendid and fit perfectly with his cover. It would be a rare occurrence if someone who didn't know of the plan Takuji had conjured up hours ago suddenly figured out who he was.

He sighed as he stood outside in the streets of Roppongi with a worried expression. "Is this really going to work?" He was barely even confident of what he was going to do, but he needed to believe in Takuji's words. That was when he thought back to his conversation with the CEO of Rapunzel which took place before three a.m.

_"Takuji… Are you sure the plan is going to actually work out the way you said it would?" Mirai asked in an uncertain tone of voice. He even had a matching frown to go with his self-doubting expression. "I mean, I know things mainly go the way you say they would, but this is a little ridiculous, don't you think? To suddenly go out with everything according to this strategy… Doesn't it seem like something will backfire on us?"_

_ Takuji waved his right hand back and forth in an upward/downward motion as if he was trying to put out a small fire. "Don't worry, Mira. Everything will be fine. And even if something _does_ go an unintended way for us, we'll get to you and Kirie somehow."_

_ "Wait…" Mirai trailed off with a disapproving frown. "Is Kirie actually going to play a part in this, as well? If so, I don't think she should—"_

_ Takuji kept smiling at the college student. "If you think she should just stay away from this, then you're just being naïve on your part, Mira. I know you care a lot about Kirie, but it's her choice if she wants to participate in our plan to defeat Tomio Kuroki. You also know deep in your heart that she truly wishes to end things with her father. However, keeping her away from doing that will only result in a bad ending for everyone." He posture relaxed a bit as he gazed into the tan eyes Mirai had. "You understand what Kirie desires, yet you're trying to stop her from accomplishing the only thing that can free her from her father's grasps? Mirai, if you truly love someone, you must think about the feelings of the person most important to you. That's what love is."_

_ "But…" Mirai hesitated with a conflicted look on his face, looking down at the grass the two of them were standing on. "What if I let her go to see her father, and it becomes the worse-case scenario? If that happens, I don't know if I could live on after that. Even if I manage to defeat him, can I really forgive myself and be the same person that I am now?"_

_ Takuji sighed with narrowed eyes and his mouth formed a thin line. "Look, Mira. Don't go thinking that it _won't_ work out; keep your cool together for this, and believe that it _will_ bring a better future for you and Kirie. Isn't that the true meaning of your name? Mirai Kageyama. Aren't you a person who can bring a brighter future for those around you? Can you not seize the future you want with your hands?"_

_ Mirai's eyes widened and he looked up at the mint-haired magician. "Takuji…"_

_ A reassuring smile appeared on Takuji's face as he stared back at the youth. "Trust yourself, Mira. And also believe in Kirie's feelings for you. That is the only way to take control of the future you will for. Love will prevail no matter how much it gets beaten down. Fight for your love, and put an end to it all."_

_ Mirai nodded and smiled back. "Yeah. Thanks, Takuji."_

In the present, Mirai shook his head and scolded himself. "No. I can't think that way if I want to save Kirie. I've got to find out more about her father and get him to fall for the trap." He walked forward, facing everything with determination.

Meanwhile, Takuji and Kirie were doing their jobs as usual, with the mint-haired young man finishing up several loads of paper at his desk with a pen in his right hand. Kirie sorted out some files and types away at her computer, dealing with articles that needed to be published. The other employees were carrying on with office calls and newspapers, prints, etc. as the day went on without any trouble. Asuka, on the other hand, was teaching at a daycare, moving to the local elementary school and even helping out other teachers along the way. Although the three of them were busy, they were enjoying the work they did.

At Cinderella, Ayame was wrapping up the magazine she was working on. Finally, she would be able to finish the last pages and edit them. A smile appeared on her face as she kept at it with her rapid typing.

"It's almost done," she said to herself as a blush formed on her cheeks. "I hope Yuzuki will be happy with this." Her expression softened as she put the last few touches on it. "Yatta!" She closed her eyes happily before opening them.

Then, she saved her work, and checked over the entire a hundred thirty-six pages, revising any mistakes and errors, before doing another save. It took over five hours, reaching six-thirty that evening. Ayame hadn't taken any breaks since that morning when she started working on it. Soon, editor-in-chief walked into the office.

"Irodori?" he said with his eyes widened at seeing the twenty-four-year-old young woman still working at that time. He held a latte in his right hand at the same time. "What are you doing here? I thought you were going to go home half an hour ago, but you're still on the Yuzuki Kitaoji magazine project? Aren't you tired right now?"

Ayame turned around in her chair and narrowed her eyes at Atsushi. "I just finished it, you know. "I'll be eating in here in just a minute or two. There's no need to be _that_ worried about me, Jinnai-san. You'll make your hair age faster if you keep checking up on your employees."

Atsushi frowned at hearing Ayame's rude comment. "Keep that up, and you'll _really_ pass out sooner or later. Anyway, forget eating in here. Contact Mr. Kitaoji right this instant to arrange dinner plans with him. I'll handle everything else for you. Did you send the file to his agency yet? Hurry up and get going, even if you haven't. You need to take a few hours off before your body gets fatigued."

As he walked towards Ayame, the brunette screamed.

"Ahh! The boss is trying to assault me!" she shouted loud enough for everyone else in the room to hear, having closed her eyes quickly. "Someone get him away from me!"

Within a second after hearing Ayame's cry for help, the other workers turned in Atsushi's direction and sent glares at him. Feeling the pressure he was receiving from them, he gulped nervously.

He held up his hands. "Wait, everyone! This is all just an act! I was only trying to prevent Irodori from overworking herself, that's all! Please believe me!" He started to back away as the co-workers made their way towards him.

One of the male employees looked at Ayame. "Now's your chance to make a run for it, Irodori-san!"

Ayame nodded and took her flash drive out from her computer. "Right! Thanks for everything you've done for me tonight! I'll be back later." She then made a mad dash towards the door.

Atsushi glanced back and yelled at Ayame in a fury. "Irodori! Did you plan this from the start?!"

"Who knows?!" Ayame grinned without looking back as she escaped outside. She ran to the restaurant she and Yuzuki were supposed to meet and saw him standing there in front of the door. Her expression shifted delightedly as she waved to the actor. "Yuzuki!" As Yuzuki turned his head towards Ayame, he was suddenly embraced by the editor from Cinderella.

"Whoa!" Yuzuki exclaimed as he caught Ayame, who was still in his arms. He frowned as he accepted her embrace. "That scared me, you know! I thought you were going to pummel me onto the carpet, Ayame."

Ayame kept smiling jubilantly with closed eyes. "Sorry, Yuzuki. I was really happy to see you, so I couldn't help myself from hugging you."

"Yeah, I could tell," Yuzuki muttered. "Think you can let go for a while? I'm hungry and this isn't exactly helping."

The two of them pulled apart and Ayame pouted.

"Uu…" She looked into Yuzuki's eyes helplessly. "I really wanted to stay there a bit longer. Food isn't everything in the world."

Yuzuki sighed and frowned once more. "But I bet you haven't eaten yet, either. You were working all day, weren't you?"

"Sou dakedo," Ayame replied. "I really wanted to finish the magazine no matter what." She looked down with a sad expression. "Was that… something I shouldn't have done, Yuzuki?"

"It's not that," the celebrity denied with another sigh. "It just concerns me that you would work so hard for something without even thinking about yourself for once. But…" He placed a hand on the dark brunette's head. "That's what I really like about you."

Ayame's eyes widened and she knew Yuzuki was smiling, so she looked up.

"I'm sorry," she apologized. "For making you worry. I'll try to take better care of my health after tonight."

Yuzuki nodded. "Let's get going, shall we?"

He held out his right hand and Ayame smiled back, taking hold of it with her left. And together, they walked inside the restaurant, still holding hands with one another.

Meanwhile, Mirai was still dressed in his disguise and was chatting at a table with a man who had long black hair that reached his neck. He had the appearance of a refined and handsome man who seemed as if he was in his thirties—particularly, thirty-two years of age to be more precise. They spoke with each other without any difficulties, continuing without a care in the world.

"So as I was telling you earlier, Mr. Kuroki," Mirai reminded the older man, "if you were to kindly distribute a portion of your assets to my company and hotel, I would gladly turn them into a prosperous paradise where you could build more wealth with every day, effectively giving you 1.5 billion yen every month on the hotel, making that 18 billion yen for you annually. Although it might not be as great as the amount of money you have right now, it's a start for someone as young as myself. I am still a beginner, despite having a year's worth of experience in the business I run."

The man—Tomio Kuroki—nodded acknowledging the situation he had been told of earlier. "I understand completely. At your age, I was also struggling to create a successful corporation. I was not yet married until I was twenty-two years old, which would probably take about three or four years before you reach the same age as I was back then. It must be harder for you since you're still trying to make a fortune for yourself, Kageyama-kun. I'll tell you what: I can give your over three-fourths of my money and you could start anew from there. What do you think?"

Mirai's eyes widened in genuine surprise. "You're willing to give me that much, Mr. Kuroki? But… I couldn't. That's more seventy-five percent of what you have to offer…!"

Another nod from the advocator. "Indeed. I realize that it may be more than what a young man such as yourself can handle, but I am honestly trusting most of my resources to you. It is yours to use however you would like. You see, an old man such as I, has no need for that much currency. I would like you to accept it as a token of my compassion for you, Kageyama-kun."

"If you wish it, then I will gratefully receive your wealth," Mirai responded, having a comprehensive expression on his face. "Thank you very much, Mr. Kuroki. I won't let your hopes down."

Tomio Kuroki let out a chuckle with closed eyes. "You need not to apologize to this elderly businessman. I am thankful to be able to do something for a youth of your capabilities, so please think nothing of it. Then," he said, taking a contract out. He signed it at the bottom and handed it over to Mirai; after that, he stood up from his seat and bowed, "I shall take my leave here. It was truly pleasant to meet you tonight for dinner, Kageyama-kun. I do hope we will meet again soon."

"Yes," Mirai agreed, "I am looking forward to seeing you once more, Mr. Kuroki. Have a wonderful evening."

The older man gave a slight nod and parted ways with the college student. It was only after he was completely out of sight that Mirai carefully gripped the contract Kirie's father had left behind in his fingers. He examined it with caution and was not surprised at what he saw.

"He's not kidding," Mirai noted with a serious expression as he distanced the sheet of paper away from himself. "He's actually turning over his possessions to me. Why?"

_He _has_ to have something planned, _he thought. _But what exactly is he trying to do?_

Then, a notion came to mind.

_Could he be trying to get hold of Kirie after giving away most of his fame and fortune? If so, I must stop him before that happens. I'm sure of it now; rather than using his money for himself, he's going to set a trap for Kirie to confront him and kill her. After he achieves his goal, he'll have his men cover up his crime and pay them in tremendous amounts of cash for obeying his orders. Then, he'll escape and leave Roppongi for good. I can't let him do as he pleases; I have to get to him before Kirie does and defeat him once and for all._

Without another thought, Mirai stood up and placed the contract inside his suit jacket, making his way to the door. Right then and there, he walked past Yuzuki and Ayame who were arriving and strolling towards the table Yuzuki had reserved for the two of them.

Yuzuki stopped and looked back. "?"

Ayame blinked a couple times while looking up at her boyfriend. "What's wrong?"

"Ah, it's nothing…" the actor trailed off. He was still staring in the direction the college student went. "It's just… I thought I saw Mirai, but I guess it was only a guy who looked like him."

"Huh…" Ayame's shoulders slumped as she tilted her head to the left, following Yuzuki's gaze. "Maybe it was just your imagination, Yuzuki. Mirai wouldn't be here, would he?"

Yuzuki frowned. "Yeah. Maybe. But I can't help but think that he passed us. I'll have to see after this if it really _was_ him."

The next day, things seemed different from before as Kirie looked up at the sky. She felt as though something was missing; then, she looked forward and walked into Rapunzel through the entrance. When she entered the editorial department, there was no sign of Takuji inside the office. Neither was Asuka, but the white-haired young woman would sometimes be there, so it wasn't every day that Kirie saw her at work with her husband.

After blinking a few times, Kirie asked, "Hey, where's Takuji? I don't see him around. Is he at another business meeting today?"

A female co-worker noticed the dark magenta-haired girl's expression. "Takuji? I have seen him this morning. Perhaps you should contact him later, but now's not a good time for that."

Kirie frowned. "What do you mean? Is Takuji in trouble or anything?"

The co-worker shook her head. "No. It's just… He hasn't said anything, except that he won't be back for quite some time. Asuka's also with him, so I believe they left for an important meeting with someone. Have they not told you their whereabouts or what they're doing, Kirie?"

"No," Kirie replied. "I didn't see them this morning, so I was sure they were already at work. They didn't even leave a note for me to read. Still, it's unusual for them to not tell me if they've gone somewhere."

The co-worker smiled. "Well, I'm sure they'll be fine. Let's get to work, okay?"

Kirie nodded. "Alright."

She stared at Takuji's desk, which was visible from afar as a look of unease was manifested on her face.

_Takuji, Asuka, wherever you two are right now, I hope you're okay, _Kirie thought, taking a look at the ceiling where the sky was seen through the glass windows. _Please… Be safe. I don't want anything to happen to you guys, so come back to everyone._

With a vast plead, she could only wish for the married couple's well-being. She didn't know how long they would be away, but she comprehended the fact that it would be a while before they came back. As she focused on her job as an editor and journalist, she couldn't help but feel lonely without the pair of magicians who she had only known for the past three years of her life. She let out a sigh and the weight of slow time she was at Rapunzel became a heavy push on the top of her back near her shoulders.

Hours later around the time Takuji told Mirai to carry out the plan, the college student was already inside the warehouse Tomio Kuroki and his henchmen would be at to meet Kirie. He quickly caught the attention of the men in black suits, though.

"Hey!" one of the men shouted, looking at the nineteen-year-old boy who was not wearing his disguise anymore. "Who are you?!"

Another one narrowed his eyes, those of which were mainly shielded with a pair of dark tinted shades. "Do you have any business with Tomio-sama? If not, then turn back now before we dispose of you!"

Mirai smirked slyly at the two men standing before him. "Sorry, but I can't let you do that."

"What?" the first man's eyes widened.

However, Mirai ignored his comment with his daredevil grin. "I have a mission to finish right now, and you're in the way, so I'll have to get to your boss before you can catch me."

"Get him!"

Several men wearing similar outfits began to run towards Mirai. The youth's expression didn't change and he held up his right index finger, swaying it back and forth.

"Tsk, tsk." Without moving from his spot, Mirai berated the numerous workers who were heading his way. "Didn't I tell you? I'm not going to allow any of you to put your hands on me. So… I'll just parts ways with you with this." He jumped into the air and as he came down, he swiftly went in different directions, kicking and punching each and every one of the men employed under Kirie's father, knocking them out within a few minutes. He seemed to enjoy himself as he took out them suited men without too much effort. A feeling of ecstasy budded inside his chest and he experienced a frenzy of excitement as he fought the henchmen preparing to attack him. "Ahaha! You're too slow for me. Are you really working under the man called Tomio Kuroki?"

A surge of frustration clouded them few remainder of the employees as the stared at Mirai.

"Argh!" A worker gritted his teeth as he stood in place. "Someone get him before he makes his way to Tomio-sama!"

The others nodded. "Yes, sir!"

As the rushed into the battlefield, something else as taking place deep within the building. On the other side of the warehouse, Kirie was face-to-face with her father. She wielded a scythe and her hair had grown longer, so much that it reached past her waist and stopped at her upper thighs, near the middle of them. She also wore the black, white, and red battle outfit she had during her days at Souseizouma Academy.

Tomio grinned at the sight of the dark magenta-haired girl. "Kirie. How nice of you to pay me a visit. It has been a long time since I got to see my lovely daughter. Have you been faring well while we were apart from one another?" He let out a malicious chuckle. "I would assume that you were since you came all the way here on your own to see me. I feel like a young man again, and not to mention how happy I was the day you were born, as well. It makes me think of myself as your wonderful and caring father once more."

"My father?" Kirie questioned with a dissatisfied frown. "You have never once been a father to me, and you never will. You don't even understand my feelings at all, and yet you _dare_ to call yourself my _father_? How absurd. You have never treated me the way a father should, so why are you addressing yourself as one? The sole reason I have come here after finding out your location is to defeat you by myself once and for all. I am here to sever my ties with you, Father. I will not permit you to torment me any longer. As a person—" Kirie shook her head. "—no, as a living being of this world, I will take you down and bury your sins in the depths of the netherworld and erase your existence for the sake of humankind."

Tomio Kuroki let out a hysterical laugh. "Hah! _You_—my very flesh and blood that I created through reproduction—are going to attempt to triumph over _me_? Now _that_ is something I find truly _amusing_, my dear offspring. You have never even _tried_ to fight back before whenever you were in the torture chamber, but this time, you are willing to _risk_ your life just to defeat me?" He sighed, shaking his head in disappointment; after that, frowned with a look of distaste. "What an obnoxious daughter I have. Your way of thinking really makes me wonder why I kept you alive all these years, Kirie. Do you really believe you can harm me? Well, then." He smirked, baring his teeth at his daughter. "See if you can continue to stand up after this."

He clenched his hand, forming a fist with it. Immediately afterwards, a black and purple sphere that had gray sparks around it manifested at his will. He glanced at it and kept grinning. Then, he pulled his right arm back and launched the small circular orb of darkness at the dark magenta-haired girl.

Right before it hit her, Kirie's eyes widened in astonishment. "…!" In an instant, it knocked her down, inflicting pain all around her body. She could barely manage to lift a muscle due to its massive impact on her. She steadily opened her eyes. "Ugh… What… was that…?" As she laid on her side, she felt a bruised sort of pain preventing her from moving when she tried to move herself up, which forced her to close her eyes. "Ack…! Uh…" She fell back down and tears formed in her eyes. "…Please save me… Mirai." Her tears flowed down as she stayed on the floor feebly. "…I don't want things to end this way…"

"My, what a pathetic sight to see," Kirie's father remarked as he watched his daughter's heart-wrenching state. "It appears that you can't even move without having to endure the great amount of agony I've caused you, my beautiful daughter. It looks like I'll have to get rid of you." He sighed in resignation with a sorrowful expression on his face as he placed his right hand on his left breast. "As much as it hurts me to do so, I must do whatever it takes to make you to understand that none of this would have occurred if you had not tried to oppose me in the first place. But do not fear, dear daughter. It'll all be over soon. You won't have to cry in misery anymore. I shall end it all for you, so just listen to Daddy this time and be a good girl, alright?"

He inched closer, but then, a voice called out.

"I won't let you touch Kirie with your tainted hands!" Mirai suddenly arrived at the scene. He stood in front of Kirie's battered body. The look on his face indicated his protectiveness towards Kirie as he stared at the underworld's ruler. "Don't even think about coming closer to her. I'll be your opponent, Mr. Tomio Kuroki."

Kirie's eyes widened as she saw her lover in front of her. "Mirai!"

"What?" Tomio asked, confused at the situation he was faced with. He was not sure how Mirai found out where he was, or even the youth's identity, as he was brusquely challenged by the young man standing before him.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Our Future Full of Hope**

Kirie could hardly move from the dark orb's impact and was now laying on her side as tears formed and flowed down from her eyes. "…Please save me… Mirai… I don't want everything to end like this…" As she cried for the college student to come to her rescue, she felt her body's weight becoming heavier from the huge amount of pain that was enforced on her body.

Kirie's father, Tomio Kuroki, could only belittle his daughter as he saw the position she was in. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? It looks like you can't even lift yourself up, my dear daughter. And here I was truly hoping for you to fight back against my strict demeanor towards you. But alas, it seems that I must rid this world of your existence." His expression represented a kind of sadness from having to view the dark magenta-haired girl's suffering state as he let out a half sigh. "It pains me so to see you experience such injury, my wonderful and lovely Kirie. You have always held a special place in my heart. After all, you are my one and only child, as well as the little girl your mother gave birth to with all her strength. Unfortunately, I must purge your very being so that we can be a family once again." His took out a long sword from within the left side of his coat jacket, which had given him the appearance of a rich man and/or butler. "With this sword, I shall take away your misery. You will not have to suffer anymore once it goes through your heart, my pride and joy. Do not fear your caring father's actions, and embrace them, for you will be able to reunite with your late mother, who died of illness when you were ten years of age. Think nothing but the happy times we shared together with her before her death. Daddy will make things all better." He stepped closer, wielding the sword in his right hand with a calm expression. "Now, take heed, and let me congratulate your final moments, Kirie."

"I don't think so!" A familiar voice shouted through the room. "Keep your filthy hands away from Kirie right this instant, you monster!"

Tomio looked around but saw no one in the room with him and Kirie. "Who's there? Show yourself or I will hunt you down before I kill my daughter."

At that moment, Mirai appeared after jumping from a high place inside the warehouse. He landed in front of Kirie's body with a tall stance, showing his protectiveness over his girlfriend. He stared at Tomio with an inner wrath that appeared within his eyes. "I won't allow you to put your hands on Kirie, so I'll be your opponent instead, Mr. Tomio Kuroki."

Kirie's eyes widened when she saw the college student, who wear currently wearing casual clothing. "Mirai! What are you doing here?"

"What else do I need to say?" Mirai looked back with a positive smile. "I'm here to save you, of course." Then, he turned his attention back towards Tomio. "I'm very disappointed with you, Mr. Kuroki. To think you would use such uncouth methods to put your own daughter's life in danger. I'm ashamed to think we might be related someday, but the fact that you're Kirie's father won't change. However, I will take you down myself and put you behind bars once this is all over."

Tomio's eyes narrowed. "What?" He immediately found himself in a dire situation. He had not anticipated the possibility of being challenged by someone who knew about him outside of his underworld status. "What are you talking about, young man? I do not even understand what you mean with those outlandish words of yours."

Mirai closed his eyes and opened them with a look of anger, power, and determination. "Let me start over with an introduction. I am Mirai Kageyama, a second-year student currently attending Rentomi College. I am also the same person you met yesterday night at the restaurant and I am nineteen years old. Furthermore, I am in love with your daughter and I am in a relationship with her right now. Kirie is the most important person to me, so I will protect her at all costs. If it means that I will have to save her from your clutches, then I will do everything I can in order to defeat you once and for all."

"What? _You_ are Mirai Kageyama? The same young man who I meet before?" Tomio questioned. "I cannot believe such a thing. Surely, Kageyama-kun and you are not the same person. Plus, my daughter would never date someone younger than her. You are lying, _that_, I am certain of it."

Mirai frowned. "I would never lie about my love for Kirie. At any rate, I will win against you, and take Kirie away from here. As long as my feelings for her stay the same, you will definitely lose."

"Heh," Tomio scoffed at the idea of having a college student overcome his power. "If you truly insist on beating me, I have no choice but to accept your courageous proposal." He held his sword up and pointed it at Mirai shortly after. "Why don't you use this as your weapon? It will be quite a treat to see if you can turn the tables against me with my own sword. Let's observe what you can do with your abilities, Mirai Kageyama-kun." He tossed the sword in Mirai's direction, to which the youth easily caught it in one hand. "If you win, I will surrender and spare Kirie's life. However, if I win, I will kill her right in front of you for your eyes to witness. The shocked expression that results in my daughter's death will be a pleasurable sight to see indeed." He breathed in deeply and exhaled with a content smile with his eyes closed. "Oh, how sweet it will be to observe your horrified appearance and the tears that come with it." He opened his eyes. "What do you think, my future son-in-law? Doesn't it excite you?"

Mirai's eyebrows furrowed with silent fury. "I don't like the fact that you would try to harm Kirie. But. I'll be sure to win this match and put you to justice, Mr. Kuroki. Anyway, let's get started." He held the sword with both his hands and readied a fighting position with a stern expression. "It's you or me, not Kirie. I'll protect her through this battle."

Tomio smirked. "As you wish, Son." He took out another long sword and their fight began. While he was overpowering Mirai, a grin spread onto his face like butter or jam on a slice of toast. "It seems you aren't half-bad at this, little boy. On the contrary, you'll need much more than that if you want to beat me at my own game." He pulled back and gave a full swing, cutting the sword Mirai was holding; the top came off and about seventy percent of it still remained. This made Mirai more alert, but before he could do anything to combat the older man's next attack, Tomio swung by turning counterclockwise, severing another sixty percent off with sheer strength.

Mirai's eyes widened in shock as he stared at what became of his weapon. "No way…"

His eyes lowered while he looked at Kirie's father, trying to keep his composure.

_This can't be… _he thought. _If he takes another swing, I'll be done for! I won't be able to save Kirie's life if this goes on…_

He bit his lip in frustration, and his grip on his broken sword's handle became stronger.

"Mirai!" Kirie shouted as she got up from her spot.

Her eyes widened when she saw Tomio's next attack coming towards the college student. Just as she began to reach for her scythe with her right hand, her father pulled his hand back and a manifestation of dusky, shadowy power began to form from his right palm. It wasn't a sphere this time, but a beam aimed at Mirai. The youth saw it nearly finished developing and held onto his sword with unwavering feelings, fronting his adversary head on.

"It was fun while it lasted, but it looks like you're history, Mirai Kageyama!" Tomio shouted with maniacal hilarity.

As he fired the ray of darkness, something happened right before it hit Mirai. The nineteen-year-old's eyes widened as he heard something come from the sword.

"…!"

_Let me lend you my power, _the voice said.

All of a sudden, the broken edge of the sword began to glow and a pink light and mist formed around it. Finally, a light blue one ran up from the center of the sword, and completed the weapon's transformation. Mirai's previously broken sword had reformed itself on time to protect its utilizer. Standing before Kirie, the college student and his blade were prepared for action.

"Wh-What's that?" Tomio asked, stunned from seeing the sword he had broken renew itself. "How did the sword I broke reform?! Don't tell me that it's fully accepted Mirai Kageyama as its new master?!" He held his sword out to defend himself as he grinded his teeth. "It can't be…! There's no way he could have tamed it!"

Mirai smirked. "But it is. And now, I'll show you its true power."

The pink and blue sword created another mist around itself; this time, it was a pure white fog-like one. Without any hesitation, Mirai jolted towards Tomio and took a swing with both hands on the hilt and shattered the blade from the mastermind's grasp. Tomio's eyes widened; he dropped the sword's remains on to the floor and stood frozen in place. Then, he fell down onto his knees and put his hands on the surface of the warehouse's base.

"I… lost…?" he inquired. He felt the taste of defeat running throughout his entire body as he stared at the ground. "No…!" His hands tightened into to fists that faced sideways. "I can't believe it…! I lost… against a nineteen year old boy…? How…? Why…?"

Mirai looked at the collapse king of the underworld. "It's because you had someone who felt so strongly for your daughter that you were faced against me and lost the final battle. And this time, I was able to free Kirie from the chains of torture from your hands. That should be more than enough to explain why you ended up sinking to the depths of hell, father-in-law." He took out a set of handcuffs from his right pants pocket and secured them around Tomio's hands. "Now, you're going to have to stay here for a while. I'm going to call the police, so they can take you in."

Within fifteen minutes, the authorities arrived at the warehouse and quickly arrested Tomio Kuroki. Takuji and Asuka came to check up on Mirai and Kirie, healing the dark magenta-haired girl's wounds. Kirie was able to walk around and move her arms and legs with too much trouble. Mirai, on the other hand, gained all of Tomio's assets and financial belongings. He gave most of it to Satsuki and donated the remainder to the Sea Breeze Garden foster home, which were accepted gratefully. Reporters and journalists came afterward and the incident that night became big news everyone in Tokyo. Weeks later, things died down and everything returned to normal.

Ayame and Atsushi had a discussion with Yuzuki's agency about the magazine Ayame had finished. The CEO and manager nodded and gave their approval, and Cinderella's magazine became a top hit. Many female and some male fans of Yuzuki's bought the cover story, and it immediately sold out in stores everywhere. This humongous number of sales added to Roppongi's wealth and fortune, especially for the two companies who contributed to the magazine. It even received foreign translations and imports to countries outside Japan.

After it was released to the public, Ayame quitted her job, and she and Yuzuki moved in together. News of their engagement and marriage sent a wave of supporting screams from the actor's diehard fans. Another few months passed by after that, and it was currently nearing the end of the first week of October 2007. At that time, Takuji and Asuka were packing up the rest of their possessions inside their apartment, and finished within a few minutes.

Takuji sighed as he took a look around. "Guess we'll have to say goodbye real soon, huh? It's been a good three years and seven months since we first came to live here."

Asuka nodded as she stood next to Takuji. "Sou da ne. We had a lot of fun times with Kirie-chan. I'll miss the memories we made together with her in this city. We even got married a few months ago at Satsuki-san's casino."

"Yeah," the husband of the marriage breathed. Then, he glanced at Asuka with a smile. "Let's go and say our last farewell to him. I'm sure he'll at least want to see us off before we leave Roppongi."

Asuka nodded, and Takuji took her left hand in his right. After that, they made their way to the Urban Casino and Resort Roppongi.

Inside the hotel, they were greeted by the owner himself.

"Takuji, Asuka, welcome," Satsuki smiled pleasantly. He was glad to see them for the last time that year. "How have you two been?"

With his right hand, Takuji gave the new king of the business world a thumbs-up and winked with his right eye. "Everything's going swell for me and Asuka. How about you, old friend?"

Satsuki laughed. "Hahaha. I've been doing fine myself." His eyes lowered and he gazed fondly at the two magicians standing in front of him. "But… I can hardly believe this will be your last day in Roppongi. There's still so much I wanted to talk to you with, and spend some more time hanging out." Tears formed in his eyes and began to flow down his cheeks. "I'm sad that I won't be able to see you again for some time. You were truly a great friend to me, Takuji. I'll never forget you and Asuka for the rest of my life."

Takuji's eyes narrowed. "Huh? It's not like we're leaving the _country_, Satsuki. We're just moving to a different city. And anyway. You were saying those words like we'd never get to see each other again. It felt as though your heart killed me, along with my marvelous wife over here. What exactly were you trying to imply? That we would stop being friends just because Asuka and I are leaving Roppongi tonight? Geez, what a nice friend _you_ are." He folded his arms, closed his eyes, and swiftly turned his head to his right. "Hmph."

"Ahaha," Satsuki laughed once more. His tears disappeared as he stared at his young friend. "That's not what I was trying to do at all. I was only telling you how much I was going to miss you two in my own way. You know that, don't you?"

The mint-haired young man shifted his position and looked at the financial monarch. "Of course I do, you big goofball. If I didn't, I would act like this. You're the best friend I ever had, and you'll always be. That's why, I'm not going to say farewell to you."

Satsuki's expression was perplexed. "But I thought you were going to today. I even came prepared to hear you say goodbye to me."

Takuji frowned. "Yeah, well, I lied. And you want to know why? Because of this." He went over to the elder man and wrapped his arms around him in a hug.

Satsuki's eyes widened and his tears came out again as he put his arms around his the male magician, closing his eyes. Asuka watched the two men and smiled softly. Several moments passed by before they let go of one another and it was a touching and beautiful sight to behold.

As they strolled through the city together, Mirai and Kirie were standing side by side. They conversed with each other as they passed by the autumn trees which were filled with many maple leaves.

"Sorry to drag you into this," the college student apologized with his usual smile. "It came up while I was on my way back from class."

Kirie smiled back. "It's fine. I like being with you, even if it's to solve a crime, Mirai. It makes me happy that you would bring me along, despite the fact that I'm not much of an assistant to you for these trivial requests."

Mirai frowned with his arms behind his head. "But having you with me gives me more confidence in getting the job done, Kirie." His expression suddenly perked up. "Hey, I know. Why don't we get married once I graduate from college? What do you think?"

"Sorry, but I can't accept your proposal just yet, Mirai," Kirie rejected as she glanced at her boyfriend. "I'd rather see you become more of an adult before I can."

Mirai's expression was a mixture of astonishment and confusion. "Huh? You mean I need to have a more mature attitude? But that'll take forever!"

Seeing the look on Mirai's face, Kirie couldn't help but laugh. "Ahaha! You're such a strange kid, Mirai. But I really like that about you. Just wait a few days after you turn twenty, okay? I'll agree to marry you after you become the legal age." She took hold of the youth's right hand with her left and together, they walked through the busy streets of Roppongi.

Mirai smiled once more as they made their way towards their next destination. "Mm, okay. I'll wait a bit and ask you again during the first week of April."

_It was a long ride for us, _he thought. _But in the end, it was worth risking my life to fight against Kirie's dad. Even so, there were so many emotions and hardships we had to go through before and after that happened. Many tears were shed, and there were those that represented sadness, along with the ones that displayed happiness. What matters now is not the past, but the present and future. The promise we made three years has not left my mind, or Kirie's. With the passage of time, the two of us are still carrying it to the fullest with our love for each other. The fateful day that brought us together has strengthened our bond as we continue to face forward._


End file.
